Buyers of Carbon Offsets Beware

The Guardian has reported that an investigation by their newspaper has shown how one can get ripped off by fighting global warming. It involves the buying of carbon offsets to compensate for the greenhouse gas emissions one may be responsible for. Typically the offset is created by projects that reduce carbon dioxide emissions or increase carbon dioxide storage. Such reductions in carbon dioxide are then sold as carbon credits. The article says there are suspicions of schemes such as selling the same ton of carbon to several different customers. If all this is true then it appears that claims of being “carbon neutral” by various corporations as a result of buying carbon offsets should be looked at with skepticism.