Finite Carbon, Forest Carbon Credit Specialist, Opens Shop - Carbon Offsets Daily

The startup says it can provide a one-stop shop for U.S. forest owners looking to manage their lands as carbon sinks for sale on emerging carbon credit markets.

Manage your forest to maximize the carbon dioxide it captures and stores, and make money doing it. That’s the service Finite Carbon is seeking to provide U.S. forest owners – and it’s promising to foot the bill at first.

William Yeatman - A Real Choice on Climate Change: Do Nothing

Of all three prospects, the smart money is on global inaction. "Doing something" about global warming doesn't come cheap-the International Energy Agency estimates it would cost $45 trillion to halve emissions by 2050-and there is no precedent for international burden sharing of this magnitude for anything short of a world war. Thus, history implies that a global response to global warming is impossible. Current climate diplomacy certainly suggests as much.

That's not a cause for despair. There is ample evidence that the benefits of economic growth unhindered by costly emissions controls surpass the deleterious effects of global warming. According to World Bank estimates, nearly 2 billion people in developing countries rely on dung, wood and charcoal to heat their homes and cook their food. For the impoverished, a coal-fired power plant giving them access to affordable energy would be a blessing. We can afford to let the climate be.

Are Green Banks a Good Idea? - Green Inc. Blog - NYTimes.com

Bert Ely, a banking consultant based in Virginia, took a look at the F.D.I.C. quarterly call reports of four green banks at Green Inc’s request. He said that three of four did not make money in the first quarter of this year — though start-up costs could be a factor, he said.

“I’m not convinced this is ultimately going to be very profitable,” he said, noting that the green banks appeared to have relatively high operating expenses — perhaps, Mr. Ely said, because of the need for specialized expertise among loan officers, among other factors. Also, providing discounted interest rates, while good for borrowers, can detract from a bank’s income, Mr. Ely observed.