COLUMN 3

Below you will find information that may help you to lessen the climate impact of your proposed development. They are being provided as general guidance for issues which might be considered in a permit application. The Coastal Commission has not endorsed these links or organizations.

• Reduce Carbon Output
• Offset Carbon Emissions
• Adapt to Climate Change

There are many opportunities available for reducing the greenhouse gas emissions of your proposed development. Some options include using techniques and appliances which increase energy efficiency, using “green building” techniques and materials, facilitating public transportation use and minimizing vehicle miles traveled, and concentrating development in urbanized areas. Please see the links below for information pertaining to energy efficiency and green building, and see other sections of this website for information on land use planning decisions and transportation choices.

• U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)

• Build It Green

• California Energy Commission Consumer Energy Center

• Energy Benchmarking for Buildings and Industries, from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Kelp, Monterey Photo © Steve Lonhart

Carbon offsets, measured usually in tons of carbon dioxide "equivalents" (CO2e), can be "bought" and "sold" on the open market. Offsets programs are voluntary, unlike cap and trade systems, which are regulatory.

While carbon offsets are getting the attention of individuals, businesses and organizations concerned about how they can reduce their own "carbon footprint," buying offsets would be best considered after first making any other changes that will directly reduce the greenhouse gas emissions they produce. Critics of carbon offsets say offsets are like “buying forgiveness for global warming sins.” They worry that offsets, which are relatively inexpensive and require no real lifestyle changes, are a disincentive to making those changes or committing resources to projects, policies, and technologies that, while more complex and expensive, may be much more effective at reducing greenhouse gases. So while the offset buyer continues the activities that churn out greenhouse gases, the offset seller uses the money generated toward some project or action that will result in the reduction or sequestration (storing/trapping carbon) of that exact amount of CO2e.

If you want to purchase carbon offsets, here are some questions to ask the seller, from Consumer’s Guide to Carbon Offsets for Carbon Neutrality, published by Clean Air Cool Planet.

1. Do your offsets result from specific projects?

2. Do you use an objective standard to ensure the additionality and quality of the offsets you sell?

3. Can you demonstrate that the projects in your portfolio would not have happened without the greenhouse gas offset market?

4. Have your offsets been validated against a third-party standard by a credible source?

5. Do you sell offsets that will actually accrue in the future? If so, how long into the future, and can you explain why you need to “forward sell” the offsets?

6. Can you demonstrate that your offsets are not sold to multiple buyers?

7. What are you doing to educate your buyers about climate change and the need for climate change policy?

Helpful Links for More Information:

• Clean Air-Cool Planet.org

• Consumer’s Guide to Carbon Offsets for Carbon Neutrality

• The Tufts Climate Initiative

• Chicago Climate Exchange

• The Gold Standard

• Cascadia Consulting Group: How to Choose a Carbon Offset

California must prepare for the changes that will come with global warming. Learn about options for and issues relating to adapting to the impacts of climate change by visiting the following links:

• NOAA Coastal Services Center Coastal Climate Adaptation Web Site
• California Climate Change Center White Paper Preparing for the Impacts of Climate Change in California: Opportunities and Constraints for Adaptation

• California Energy Commission Staff Paper Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation in California

• Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Report "Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability"

• Pew Center on Global Climate Change, Adaptation Planning – What U.S. States and Localities are Doing