carbon credits for sale

[islandgirl]

Tuesday » May 29 » 2007

Carbon credits to go on sale in B.C
Miro CernetigCanWest News Service
Tuesday, May 29, 2007

VICTORIA - British Columbians may soon be able to buy carbon credits to offset the greenhouse gases generated in their everyday lives, said Premier Gordon Campbell.

Residents would buy the credits from the province's "green" industries or public service organizations.

The initiative - a first in Canada - is part of the government's attempt to fight global warming by developing a regional carbon-trading registry to have B.C. reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to 33 per cent of today's levels by 2020.

Campbell said the system is being developed within the new carbon-trading registry that B.C. is setting up in conjunction with five western U.S. states, led by California, whose Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger will be arriving in Vancouver on Thursday.

The new system will allow British Columbians to offset personal carbon-generating activities, such as air travel, according to Campbell.

"This will be done because people want to do it," said Campbell. "Our job is to give them the vehicle to arrive at the destination ... that's what carbon credits will do."

At the moment, people can buy carbon credits from a variety of organizations often offering green-friendly projects outside of Canada over the Internet that involve, for example, tree planting or investing in renewable energy projects.

But under B.C.'s plan - which Campbell acknowledged won't be implemented until next year at the earliest - the Liberal government is hoping people would be able to spend those dollars within their own province. The carbon emissions of the projects they buy into, said Campbell, would be audited under the carbon-trading registry that is being created.

"This is policy on the fly," said Shane Simpson, the B.C. New Democratic Party's critic on the government's climate change agenda. "How is this going too work? What is it going to do to the budget?"

The government's climate-change initiative - which is likely to mean multi-million-dollar costs to business and changes to consumer behaviour - only began to unfold a few months ago, when the premier surprised his own caucus with his new policy thrust.
Vancouver Sun

© CanWest News Service 2007

[StormJr]

Yep....i'm going to sell some carbon offsets to here in Minnesota. Take some of the seeds from the Maple tree outside my window, then go to the state fair and sell them as carbon offsets.

Ok, so I'm being sarcastic...but you can bet your bottom dollar that I'd sell some.

[Chin Music Express]

Originally Posted by Stormer

Yep....I'm going to sell some carbon offsets to here in Minnesota. Take some of the seeds from the Maple tree outside my window, then go to the state fair and sell them as carbon offsets.

Ok, so I'm being sarcastic...but you can bet your bottom dollar that I'd sell some.

Actually, that's one of the many things people need to plant more trees. Trees are a good at removing carbon and other pollutants. Plants in general remove various things that are not good for you and me from the air, soil, and water.

I don't like carbon credits for one main reason. It gives people an excuse to burn more gas and waste energy. People need to change there behavior to reduce energy use not give a few dollars to some organization to clear them of their guilt for being energy hogs.

[spoc22]

How many trees would it take to offset the carbon emissions Algore is emitting flying around the globe hawking his movie and book while campaigning for the Nobel Prize? And don't forget, it takes trees decades before they can remove significant amounts of pollutants.