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Forest Sector Carbon Offset Projects: Near-Term Opportunities to Mitigate Greenhouse Gas Emissions

  • Chapter
Terrestrial Biospheric Carbon Fluxes Quantification of Sinks and Sources of CO2

Abstract

The Framework Convention on Climate Change separately recognizes sources and sinks of greenhouse gases and provides incentives to establish C offset projects to help meet the goal of stabilizing emissions. Forest systems provide multiple opportunities to offset or stabilize greenhouse emissions through a reduction in deforestation (C sources), expansion of existing forests (CO2 sinks) or production of biofuels (offset fossil fuel combustion). Attributes and dimensions of eight forest-sector C offset projects, established over the past three years, were examined. The projects, mostly established or sponsored by US or European electric utilities, propose to conserve/sequester over 30 x 106 Mg C in forest systems at an initial cost of $1 to 30 Mg C. Given the relative novelty and complexity of forest sector C offset projects, a number of biogeochemical, institutional, socio-economic, monitoring, and regulatory issues merit analysis before the long-term potential and cost effectiveness of this greenhouse gas stabilization approach can be determined.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Environmental Research Laboratory, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 200 SW 35th Street, Corvallis, OR, 97333, USA

    R. K. Dixon

  2. Climate Change Division, Office of Policy Analysis, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington DC, 20460, USA

    K. J. Andrasko

  3. ICF, Incorporated, 850 K Street, Washington DC, 20006, USA

    F. G. Sussman & M. A. Lavinson

  4. Trexler and Associates, 1131 SE River Forest Road, Oak Grove, OR, 97267, USA

    M. C. Trexler

  5. Department of Civil Engineering, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, 97331, USA

    T. S. Vinson

Authors
  1. R. K. Dixon
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  2. K. J. Andrasko
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  3. F. G. Sussman
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  4. M. A. Lavinson
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  5. M. C. Trexler
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  6. T. S. Vinson
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Wisniewski & Associates, Inc., 6862 McLean Province Circle, Falls Church, VA, 22043, USA

    Joe Wisniewski

  2. American Forests, 1516 P Street, NW, Washington, DC, 20005, USA

    R. Neil Sampson

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© 1993 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

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Dixon, R.K., Andrasko, K.J., Sussman, F.G., Lavinson, M.A., Trexler, M.C., Vinson, T.S. (1993). Forest Sector Carbon Offset Projects: Near-Term Opportunities to Mitigate Greenhouse Gas Emissions. In: Wisniewski, J., Sampson, R.N. (eds) Terrestrial Biospheric Carbon Fluxes Quantification of Sinks and Sources of CO2 . Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-1982-5_38

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-1982-5_38

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-94-010-4875-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-011-1982-5

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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