Broad Support Emerges for Offsets

Apologies for my long absence on this blog. During early June, there was a vote on the climate bill and my energies were diverted into working on that. For any of you that follow politics, you know that sometimes in order to maintain the trust of those you are working with -- you just can't share everything publicly in real time.

But, now I'm back to providing as much good info as I can on the ag offsets issue - so please check back often.

Below is a letter with some very impressive signers in support of good offsets policy within a climate bill. This letter came about after the strong efforts of Senators Stabenow, Brownback, Crapo and others who pulled together an amendment that would have created strong offsets policy within a climate change bill.

As you can see by those signing the letter, a strong coalition has finally formed to champion good offsets policy within mandatory climate change legislation. Bravo to the groups who rolled up their sleeves and jumped in to shape what could be agriculture's third or fourth largest market: carbon.

Now it is important that the coalition remain together and continue to work with staff in the Senate and the House so that when a bill comes up and passes in the next Congress, agriculture's interest will have been fully accounted for.
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June 12, 2008

The Honorable Debbie Stabenow
United States Senate
Washington D.C. 20510

Dear Senator Stabenow:

We are writing to thank you for your leadership
in promoting the key benefits thatoffsets, particularly
agriculture and forestry offsets, can provide in
addressing greenhouse gas emissions reductions. Offsets
projects are critical to ensuring that any legislation to
address global climate change can achieve meaningful
environmental results in a cost-effective manner. In
addition to these economic benefits of emissions offsets
projects, they can help drive new technologies and
services, and provide extensive environmental benefits.

Your amendment to the Climate Security Act (S. 3036)
provides a useful framework for developing offsets policy
that will engage agriculture and forestry interests,
utilities and industry seeking to reduce their emissions,
entities that finance and develop offset projects, and
environmental groups. We look forward to continuing to
work with you and your staff to craft a robust,
sustainable, offsets policy that efficiently reduces costs
and maintains environmental integrity.

Sincerely,

Agricultural Carbon Market Working Group
American Farm Bureau Federation
American Farmland Trust
American Soybean Association
Business Council for Sustainable Energy
Carbon Offset Providers Coalition
--Blue Source
--Camco
--The Carbon Neutral Company
--CommonWealth
--CO2-Solutions.com
--Greenhouse Gas Services, a GE AES venture
--Kolibri Group
--MGM International
--N.serve Environmental Services
Coalition for Emission Reduction Projects
--American Electric Power
--Blue Source
--Deutsche Bank
--Dominion
--Duke Energy
--EcoSecurities
--Econergy
--El Paso Corporation
--Environmental Credit Corp
--Equator Environmental
--First Climate
--Leaf Clean Energy Company
--MGM International
--Natsource
--Stark Investments
Deere & Company
The Dow Chemical Company
DTE
Duke Energy
DuPont
Environmental Defense Fund
FPL Group
General Electric
National Association of Conservation Districts
National Barley Growers Association
National Association of Wheat Growers
National Cattlemen’s Beef Association
National Corn Growers Association
National Farmers Union
National Milk Producers Federation
The Nature Conservancy
NRG Energy
PG&E