[Sustain] Web Address For Carbon Trading Program

[Eric Brooks]

Here is the web address for the show I mentioned below:

http://www.kpfa.org/archives/index.php?arch=20061

Hi all,

I recently listened to KPFA's radio program Terra Verde, a really badly
put together 'environmental' program which repeatedly, since is
inception, has been duped into promoting a corporate manipulated
perspective on environmental issues.

Last Friday's edition was about 'carbon offsets' (or 'carbon emissions
trading') and I would highly recommend all of you take a half hour to
listen to it so that you can get a sense of the ridiculous sham of
'carbon trading'.

If you listen carefully, you will notice that the U.S. carbon trading
system is corporate led and -voluntary- meaning that there would be no
reason whatsoever for any corporation which knows it will exceed its CO2
limits to take part in the project. Furthermore you will note the the
U.S. system is -unregulated- and that the corporations and organizations
involved in the scheme simply arbitrarily set the standards for what
constitutes carbon savings themselves! Also, you will hear one of the
guests admit that his organization has a business relationship with one
of the private carbon trading corporations that it has just listed as
one of the top 8 of the corporations reliably trading carbon emissions.

Finally, you will hear neither of the show's guests ever stating where
the money comes from to create the carbon credits in the first place...
the most important piece of information that they could have talked about.

Totally dumbfounded by what I was hearing, I decided to do some digging
on the organization that the central guest Bill Burtis was representing,
called Clean Air - Cool Planet, see http://www.cleanair-coolplanet.org/

Once I got to its web site all became clear. I discovered that the
organization promotes corporate friendly 'climate solutions' and its
Board of Directors includes:

- 2 current employees of NRDC (the most vile and corporate of all
'environmental' groups which recently came out supporting liquid natural
gas)

- 2 former high-ups at World Wildlife Fund

- 1 from Environmental Defense Fund

- 1 vice-president of a public relations firm

- 1 president of a plastics manufacturing company

- 2 consultants on government energy regulations for the fossil fuel and
energy industries

- the 'National Energy Manager' for Whole Foods Market

- 1 former executive with Chase Manhattan Bank (in charge of
'derivatives trading' - which is more properly described as financial
gambling schemes)

- The co-founder of Americans for Equitable Climate Solutions, a
corporate apologist climate change group also known as The Sky Trust
Institute, which has its mail delivered care of Common Assets Defense
Fund (founded by former Sierra Club president Adam Werbach, who is
currently working with Wal-Mart to help them greenwash their corporate
image). The other founder of Sky Trust is Peter Barnes who also
co-founded the infamous corporate greenwashing coalition, Businesses for
Social Responsibility.

and finally

- the former president of John D. Rockefeller III's Agricultural
Development Council

cheers,

Eric Brooks