Christopher Galik

The creation of a domestic cap-and-trade program for greenhouse gases in the United States is currently receiving a great deal of attention.  In the U.S. Senate, several bills have been introduced and the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act of 2007 (S.2191) has cleared the Environment and Public Works Committee.  In the House of Representatives, a series of discussion papers are being produced that outline the likely components of future climate legislation.  Carbon offsets are common to many of these efforts.

Despite the inclusion of carbon offsets in many of the proposals currently being discussed and debated, a number of issues and considerations remain.  What activities are likely to be included in a federal offsets program?  Will there be a limit on how big a role offsets can play?  How will project accounting methodology be determined?  How will existing projects and so-called “early actors” be addressed?  Besides offsets, are there other opportunities for activities that are not regulated as part of the emissions cap to participate?

This presentation will discuss a number of these issues, beginning with an overview of current legislative proposals.  It will touch on efforts by Duke University and others to explore the various options involved with the creation of a federal carbon offsets program as part of a larger cap-and-trade framework.  Finally, it will delve into a few of the specific issues that are likely to be a source of continuing debate moving forward.