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https://theconversation.com/were-burning-too-much-fossil-fuel-to-fix-by-planting-trees-making-net-zero-emissions-impossible-with-offsets-217437>
"The idea that we can mitigate current carbon emissions by “offsetting” them
with carbon reduction initiatives elsewhere has become central to government
and business responses to climate change. But it’s an idea we need to seriously
question.
Essentially, the offsetting strategy assumes the release of carbon stored by
ancient biology a hundred million years ago can be mitigated in the current
active carbon cycle. Since the Kyoto protocol was signed, offsetting has become
the preferred option globally.
The concept of “net zero” carbon emissions is also at the heart of New
Zealand’s official climate response and its Emissions Trading Scheme.
How this might change under a new government is hard to predict, with the
different positions held by the negotiating parties potentially leading to a
“coalition of climate chaos”, according to one commentator.
At one level, net zero makes sense. Planting trees to mitigate the effects of
forest clearance – or to provide shade, stabilise land and enhance biodiversity
– means carbon in the atmosphere can be sequestered where it otherwise would
not be.
But that doesn’t automatically mean the planet can absorb all the fossil carbon
human industry continues to release. The idea that harm done in the present can
be “offset” somewhere else in the future – something also seen in the field of
freshwater ecology – cannot be taken at face value."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
