Photo: Lincolnian (Brian)
As with any environmental issue, the release of carbon compounds into the atmosphere and the resulting contribution to global climate change will not be solved via any sort of quick fix or regional solution. While it is good that people are beginning to get serious about taking concrete action to combat climate change by reducing carbon emissions, simply pursuing local carbon offset policies will not result in concrete change.
Photo: David Hawgood
Carbon trading won’t work unless it’s coordinated, and it's as simple as that. To effect a working carbon trading scheme that will positively affect the levels of carbon compounds in the atmosphere will require a large scale, worldwide regime to manage and allocate carbon emissions. Local projects may contribute in a small sense to solving the total quantity of emissions, but one heavy polluting factory in India or China can completely negate any well intentioned community carbon reduction project. And carbon compounds released into the atmosphere over Asia do not restrict their effect to that continent. The overall parts per million calculation of carbon dioxide, methane, or other carbon compounds is done globally, not in one particular region or another. The atmosphere is its own cohesive system, independent of human borders or economic alliances.
The calculation of maximum emission levels to be allowed over a given span of time must be done by teams of scientists and informed policymakers on a worldwide scale. While a city mandating a reduction in carbon emissions by eliminating cars from the urban core is admirable, it is meaningless if, at the same time, more driving is done elsewhere in the world. Just as with air pollution, dumping trash in the ocean and overfishing, carbon emissions cannot be tackled by one group in isolation. Carbon trading won’t work unless it’s coordinated and emissions are distributed fairly.
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