Markey Sends Letter to EPA on Carbon Offsets, Asks for Climate Market Order
Follows Select Committee Hearing, Similar Letter to FTC(Washington, DC) - Chairman Edward Markey (D-MA) of the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming sent a letter to the head of the Environmental Protection Agency today asking the agency to take a leadership role in promoting the development of standards for the currently-unregulated carbon offset market. This letter follows a hearing held by the Select Committee last week on carbon offsets, which resulted in Chairman Markey sending a similar letter to the Federal Trade Commission.
"As with any new market, we must ensure that we are protecting consumers as corporations grow," said Chairman Markey. "But the stakes are higher here—we have the health and future of the planet at stake as well."
Carbon offsets are credits that consumers, businesses and government agencies can buy to compensate for the global warming emissions caused by driving, using electricity, or other activities. When properly structured, the money is then used to fund clean energy development projects, tree plantings, or other activities that "offset" a certain amount of heat-trapping pollution.
The global carbon offset market is currently valued at $100 million per year, but analysts expect that number to rise following Live Earth and other high profile events, with many expecting it to grow five-fold within the next few years. Currently there are over three dozen offset providers in the United States, and the majority of global demand for voluntary offsets comes from U.S. businesses and consumers.
Today’s letter, addressed to EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson, notes that EPA’s Climate Leaders program "is already engaged in developing protocols for offset projects and has relevant expertise." The letter suggests that "a lack of generally accepted standards has raised questions about the credibility of some offset products," and asks EPA to help fill this gap.
The letter sent to the FTC asked that agency to evaluate existing guidelines for the advertising or marketing of environmentally-friendly products to consumers and look for additional ways to apply those guidelines to the growing carbon offset market. The FTC’s current guidelines define terms like "recycled" and "recyclable" to ensure products are properly representing their environmental benefits
The Select Committee was active during the 110th and 111th Congresses. This is an archived version of the website, to ensure that the public has ongoing access to the Select Committee record. This website, including external links, will not be updated after Jan. 3rd, 2010.
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