Carbon Trade: Regenerating responsibility [Chapter 4 of

Abstract

"Carbon off sets are not emissions reductions. Each off set that is developed in the South allows pollution from fossil-fuelled power stations or heavy industry in the global North to continue over and above reduction limits while the same companies and industrialised countries claim compliance with paltry reduction targets on paper. To date, the UN’s Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) has actually resulted in an increase of CO2 emissions worldwide – displacing emissions cuts in the North in favour of off set projects that have already awarded billions in free subsidies to some of the world’s most polluting industries.[...]", p. 53