2Sustain

Over the past few weeks, there has been plenty of news regarding carbon offset strategies and practices. Have you heard about RGGI, WCI, and the new survey results released by EcoSecurities and ClimateBiz? If not then here you go…some fascinating stuff going on.

In late September, the ten Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states participating in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI, pronounced “Reggie”) announced the successful launch of the nation’s first CO2 auction . A total of 59 bidders from the energy, financial, and environmental sectors took part, purchasing all of the 12,565,387 allowances offered for sale on September 25. The clearing price was $3.07 per allowance, generating $38,575,783 in proceeds that the participating states can now invest in energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies and other programs to benefit energy consumers. The next allowance auction is scheduled for December 17.

A few days before the RGGI auction, seven Western U.S. states and four Canadian provinces announced their plans for a west-coast cap-and-trade program. Because the Western Climate Initiative (WCI) program is multi-sector (covering nearly 90% of the region’s emissions from electricity, industry, transportation, residential and commercial fuel use), it promises to be North America’s most comprehensive carbon reduction strategy to date. But, unfortunately, we’ll have to wait awhile to see how this plan works out; the first phase of the WCI cap-and-trade program isn’t slated to kick in until January 1, 2012.

I’m excited that these regional carbon markets are taking shape, and based on the results of a new survey, there are plenty of you who share my enthusiasm. In their “Carbon Offsetting Trends Survey 2008,” ClimateBiz.com and carbon offset broker EcoSecurities asked 65 leading multinational corporations about their attitudes and current practices regarding offsets and carbon management, and I have to admit, I was struck by the results. Take a look at a few of the key findings:

•    A whopping 88% of surveyed companies are either currently undertaking carbon offset strategies or would consider offsetting in the future.
•    43% of surveyed companies have already implemented an existing carbon management strategy; 34% said they were in the process of developing one.
•    74% of survey respondents indicated that they had already started implementing internal emission reductions.
•    The most desirable project location for the purchase of carbon offsets was North America, closely followed by South America.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not implying that offsets are a panacea, and I know that there’s still a lot of work to be done regarding regulation and best practices for renewable energy credits. (Check out this federal report for details about the current challenges.) However, when nine out of ten business leaders agree on anything, it’s noteworthy. When it turns out that they’re agreeing on issues related to carbon management, I think we are definitely making significant strides toward a more sustainable future.