A European Voice debate
Wednesday 4 June 2008, 18.30 - 20.00
Résidence Palace, Brussels
It matters not where cuts in greenhouse gas emissions come from – as long as they come from somewhere. So runs the logic behind carbon-offsetting. Consumers, companies and countries pay others to offset the impact of their carbon emissions. And carbon-offsetting is a growth industry. Having established an Emissions Trading Scheme, the EU is now debating its extension.
Some politicians in Europe are even arguing for personal carbon allowances. But is carbon offsetting the right way to save the planet? Or is it a moral cop-out – a way of easing consumer consciences while maintaining environmentally damaging habits? In medieval times, the church sold indulgences – slips of paper to forgive sins – without requiring any change in behaviour from the sinner. Is carbon offsetting the modern equivalent?
On the occasion of the European Commission's Green Week, European Voice explored the morality and merit of carbon offsetting. Mayer Hillman, a senior fellow at the Policy Studies Institute and author of How we can save the planet (Penguin 2004), is opposed to the practice. Tanguy du Monceau, founder of CO2logic, a firm that helps businesses go ‘carbon neutral', makes his living from carbon offsetting. The two went head-to-head in European Voice's Green Talk.
