Landowners face hurdles in carbon-credit market

[Oregon] Carbon-credit trading is on the rise worldwide, but woodland owners will need to overcome serious obstacles to gain a foothold in the new market, according to several industry experts at the Forests, Carbon and Climate Change Conference in Corvallis, Ore. Although the carbon credit cap-and-trade system has grown into an estimated $40 billion global industry since being implemented in 2005, “forest carbon was a trivial part of that,” said Bettina von Hagen, vice president of forestry for the Ecotrust nonprofit group. “It’s not a done deal that we will become part of the mix unless we begin to shape the rules in Oregon” and elsewhere. Difficulties in measuring offset emissions, managing risk, navigating complex rules and committing to lengthy contracts all impede the growth of the forest carbon market, said Matt Delaney, a forestry consultant.

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