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Another Inconvenient Truth
Behind the feel-good hype of carbon offsets, some of the deals don't deliver.......................Done carefully, offsets can have a positive effect and raise ecological awareness. But a close look at several transactions-including those involving the Oscar presenters, Vail Resorts, and the Seattle power company-reveals that some deals amount to little more than feel-good hype. When traced to their source, these dubious offsets often encourage climate protection that would have happened regardless of the buying and selling of paper certificates. One danger of largely symbolic deals is that they may divert attention and resources from more expensive and effective measures.
March 20, 2007
by Ben Elgin
in Business Week
Behind the feel-good hype of carbon offsets, some of the deals don't deliver
The organizers of the Academy Awards declare all their celebrity presenters to be "carbon-neutral." Vail Resorts Inc. (MTN ) in Colorado boasts that its chairlifts and lodges are "100% powered by wind." Seattle's municipal utility claims that its net contribution to global warming is zero.
A growing number of organizations, corporations, cities, and individuals are seeking to protect the climate-or at least claim bragging rights for protecting the climate. Rather than take the arduous step of significantly cutting their own emissions of carbon dioxide, many in the ranks of... [continue via Web link]
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