Forest carbon offsets: know your options and know the risks

By now you’ve heard the ambitious climate objectives of organizations striving to reach net-zero emissions, or become carbon-negative, in the near future. Everyone from local home builders to companies like Google and Apple are joining the movement. While governments play a different role than the companies, they seem equally keen to help stem the tide of carbon emissions in the atmosphere. Generally speaking, their job is to support organizations’ carbon-cutting efforts through economic incentives, consistent standards, and regulatory oversight. There are two basic forms of offsets, one form is compliance markets, where governments purchase or generate offsets to meet international climate change commitments. …The second is the voluntary market where people and businesses can buy carbon offsets as part of their pursuit of a smaller carbon footprint; you might see this as an option when you purchase your airline tickets.