What is carbon trading for? Last year, thousands of people protested at the European Climate Exchange in London against carbon trading. The protest was part of the Camp for Climate Action that has also targeted coal mining, coal-fired power plants and the expansion of Heathrow airport. In a statement, Camp for Climate Action explained what they were doing in London: “We were there to expose carbon trading as a financial fraud which has nothing to do with climate change.”
Funnily enough, the Chief Executive of the European Climate Exchange would agree with at least part of that statement: carbon trading has nothing to do with climate change. He would also find it increasingly difficult to argue that it does not involve financial fraud. But if carbon trading does not reduce greenhouse gas emissions, what is it actually for?
See http://www.redd-monitor.org/2010/07/07/what-is-carbon-trading-for/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Redd-monitor+%28REDD-Monitor%29.