Government’s carbon offsetting plans exposed as con by FoE
increasing the use of carbon offsetting, Friends of the Earth is warning in a
new report released today [Tuesday 2 June 2009] that exposes carbon offsetting
as ineffective and damaging.
Change Campaign for a strong and fair global climate agreement at UN talks – which
resume in Bonn next week and culminate in Copenhagen in December – exposes carbon
offsetting as a con which is failing to reduce, and in some cases is even increasing,
carbon emissions.
climate talks, including proposing a plan to carbon offset by buying up forests
– which will not stop deforestation and will cause significant social harm to
the people that rely on them.
warming if we are to avoid climate catastrophe. The green campaign group is urging
people to join its Demand Climate Change campaign by signing an international
petition at
for real action.
emissions by at least 40 per cent by 2020 – through real change at home, not by
buying offsets from abroad – and earmark new money for developing countries to
adapt to the effects of climate change and grow their economies using clean technology.
at the UN climate talks – which means avoiding real action through dodgy accounting
instead of taking bold action to tackle the climate crisis.
lives and livelihoods of millions of people at risk and is entrenching inequality
between rich and developing countries’ levels of emissions.
investing in green technologies at home would bring.
to cut their emissions first and fast and pay up for their fair share of global
costs to fight climate change.”
interviews – please contact the Friends of the Earth press office to arrange.
flawed, and cannot successfully be reformed because:
while rich countries continue pumping out climate-changing gases with impunity
– when the science demands that carbon reductions are made in both developed and
developing countries;
carbon is saved;
c. Many of the projects are fossil-fuel based projects which increase emissions
rather than reduce them;
and provides an excuse for politicians to give the go-ahead to carbon intensive
projects such as airport runways and coal-fired power stations;
countries.
chunks of forest whilst continuing to pump out emissions, in an extension of carbon
offsetting. 1.6 billion people rely on forests, including 60 million indigenous
people who are entirely dependent upon forests for their livelihoods, food, medicines
and building materials.
these communities struggling to survive.
be used to replace forests with large monoculture plantations. Plantations only
store 20% of the carbon of intact forests, so this would reduce REDD’s impact
on cutting carbon emissions.
group of people dedicated to action on climate change and limiting its impact
on the world’s poorest communities. The coalition’s supporter base of more than
11 million people spans over 100 organisations, from environment and development
charities to unions, faith, community and women’s groups. Together we demand practical
action by the UK to keep temperatures well below an average 2 degree rise. For
further information visit