‘Carbon offsetting in the case of Costa Rica,’ says Carmen Roldán Chacón, Director of Environmental Services Development and Commercialisation, National Forestry Financing Fund, Ministry of the Environment, Energy and Technology of Costa Rica.
Costa Rica, through investment in forest cover recovery, became a carbon sink according to the FAO in 2016, which means that forests emit less GHGs than the amount they absorb.
But just as with ecotourism, keeping it local is best: we can’t let some countries do all the hard work as others continue to pollute .
According to the a Greenpeace carbon offsetting report, ‘a newly-planted tree can take as many as 20 years to capture the amount of CO2 that a carbon-offset scheme promises.
A recent report suggests that there isn’t even enough space on the planet for all the trees necessary for carbon offsetting pledges.
So, if carbon offsetting isn’t doing enough, can we as individuals go further? ‘The actions taken by companies and individuals in the next five years will have the biggest impact before it is too late, and offsetting is essential to reverse the impact from un-avoidable emissions,’ says Carbon Neutral Britain’s James Poynter.
How can we take small steps in the right direction without simply planting a tree and looking the other way? ‘For travel, the ideal would be to look for the least polluting means, those using technology that demonstrates the reduction of GHG emissions, train instead of plane, using large planes instead of private flights, or carpooling,’ says Costa Rican expert says Carmen Roldán Chacón.
‘Walk a lot, use public or shared transport, horses, canoes, etc.
In travel, this can be achieved in a variety of ways, from championing air travel providers who are developing sustainable aviation fuels to working with hotels and accommodation providers who source their energy from renewable sources.
Ultimately, individuals, companies and governments need to stop the carbon emissions getting into the atmosphere in the first place.