Restoring The Environment Through Carbon Offset
Written by Grace Carter on January 16th, 2010
As the planet tries to deal with the grave threats posed by air pollutants and greenhouse gases, carbon offset is providing an incentive to motivate governments and organizations to keep carbon emissions within prescribed limits.
The uncontrolled emission of hazardous greenhouse gases is checked by the carbon offset idea, which does so by giving inducement for use of alternative and renewable energy, reforestation schemes etc.. The greenhouse gas emission caps for developed and developing countries are governed by the Kyoto Protocol, an internationally recognized pact, which was signed in 2005 by almost all countries of the world.
As per the Protocol, firms releasing tonnes of carbon dioxide have to either reduce on their emissions to the allotted levels, buy carbon credits certificates, which can be transacted on the bourses, or otherwise pay a carbon tax in order to be compliant with the prescribed reduction. Carbon credits, which came much earlier than carbon offset, are the most popular and cost effective alternatives for companies, with one credit certifying the buyer to release one tonne of carbon dioxide into the air. Both multinational and local companies, to make their operations carbon neutral and enhance their image in front of customers and investors, are increasingly buying carbon credits.
Ambitious environmental projects around the world that are working towards the overall reduction of CO2\’s harmful effects on the environment are now also being aided by the carbon offset system, which funds several of these projects. It helps in promoting clean and renewable energy choices like tidal energy, solar power etc and other nature conservation projects like reforestation.
Apart from the industries, even ordinary persons are helping the environment by buying carbon offset and motivating others to do the same. Carbon offsets are available for purchasing online through several providers, but it must be verified that the provider is actually putting money into impactful carbon reduction initiatives.
Carbon offset is a very effective way to save out planet but we must also keep in mind that making small changes in our daily lives can be of immense help in preventing further environmental degradation. We must adhere to certain fundamental practices like switching off lights and other electronic appliances when not required, using low-energy bulbs and LED lighting, and going for cleaner fuels like biodiesel.
Carbon offset is not yet a popular word for a layman. Mass awareness on the subject through extensive education is required to bring us some steps closer to a pollution free and healthy planet.
Learn more about carbon credits and carbon trading and get a deeper understanding on how you can help in saving the environment.
This entry was posted on Saturday, January 16th, 2010 at 8:33 am and is filed under Business. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Tags: business, carbon credits, carbon information, carbon management, carbon offset, carbon trading, environment, Marketing
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