“Time is now short for forestry projects to deliver any worthwhile volume of carbon credits to the CER market by 2012. While the bottlenecks that have held back the afforestation and reforestation (A/R) sector in Kyoto’s Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) are now mostly resolved, it may be too late to help developed nations in their efforts to meet Kyoto emissions reduction targets.”

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The United Nations has issued credits to three projects in India for emissions reductions from renewable energy and energy efficiency.

• A new 8-megawatt grid-connected biomass plant in state of Chhattisgarh in central India, below Uttar Pradesh, received 47,482 credits.
• The UN also issued credits to Germany for a 4.5 MW grid-connected hydroelectric power plant in Himachal Pradesh in northern India. The Maujhi project received 7,507 credits for 2007 and had banked 21,881 credits since July 2004.
• The third set of credits went to the United Kingdom for energy-efficiency improvements at ITC Paperboards & Specialty Papers in Andhra Pradesh, about 300 km from Hyderabad. The project made efficiency improvements at its pulp-and-paper mill, which is one of the largest in India. Those upgrades have reduced energy consumption by 13.38 gigawatt-hours a year. The UN issued 2,056 credits to the paper mill, which also generates power using steam. Additionally, black liquor solids from wood pulp, a byproduct of the paper mill, is a climate-neutral fuel, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The mill has received 13,314 credits since April 2002.

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“Guidebook for the formulation of afforestation and reforestation projects under the Clean Development Mechanism”

“Leading academics and watchdog groups allege that the UN’s main offset fund is being routinely abused by chemical, wind, gas and hydro companies who are claiming emission reduction credits for projects that should not qualify. The result is that no genuine pollution cuts are being made, undermining assurances by the UK government and others that carbon markets are dramatically reducing greenhouse gases, the researchers say.”

“Supply forecasts for project-based carbon emission offsets, which can be used by heavy industry to meet greenhouse gas targets, are falling according industry analysts.”

“Most Thai farmers plant trees and simply pray for good prices as their parents did for decades, but Sawai Sangsa-wang realised his trees are more valuable. With the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) programme, also known as carbon credits, his perennial tree-planting not only produces income from payoon and teak, but he can also turn every tonne of carbon his plants reduce into income.”