One controversial option for decreasing the rate of greenhouse gas emission into the atmosphere is the carbon offset. Rather than reducing the amount of carbon they emit, companies compensate for this pollution by preserving forests—in essence, paying to let nature do the work.

California’s offset program is part of its carbon cap-and-trade system, which imposes an overall decrease in greenhouse gas emissions between now and 2030 and requires companies to pay penalties for going over their carbon emission limits. The ability to buy and sell offset credits to preserve forests around the nation has created a market for these permits. In July, California Governor Jerry Brown signed into law an extension of the cap and trade system to 2030.

Under the current cap-and-trade program, offset credits can make up as much as eight percent of the total amount of allowances used for compliance by a covered entity.”

Right now, the forest offset is only two percent of the potential allowances, but a study from Stanford University indicates it is working even at that percentage. Christa Anderson, a PhD student in environment and resources at Stanford University and the study’s lead author, has reported, along with Christopher Field and Katharine Mach, that the forests are being protected and the release of carbon stored within the trees and other vegetation is prevented. The study was published by Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment last week.

“It was really exciting to see, in this moment where it’s hard to find any positive news on climate change, here’s this very small program that looks like it’s actually working so far,” Anderson said. Regarding the small percentage of forest offset, she added, “So, that question of, are offsets allowing greenhouse gas emitters to avoid responsibility of reduction? Probably not, in this case.”

Read the source article at nonprofitquarterly.org