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Hundreds of thousands of acres in the North Country are hosting carbon offset projects and many of them are forestry-related. But how does that translate to climate mitigation?
Forestry offset projects, meant to conserve land, are enrolled in the compliance and voluntary markets. In California, the compliance market is overseen by the Air and Resources board. While researching for our carbon offset series, I learned that credits enrolled in the compliance market are generally worth more than its voluntary counterpart. But the price of a credit can range widely from a few dollars to more than $50.
To be certified, or deemed effective, experts say projects should meet some basic standards. I go over those in the article linked here. There’s also a larger question by scientists, landowners and climate-conscious people about whether the projects work in mitigating climate change.
Some call it a greenwashing tactic while others look at it as a necessary tool to achieve a net-zero emission status.
Spring bird migrants cruising through the park are headed north for the season. The Crown Point State Historic Site, under the North Atlantic flyway, hosts a 
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Listening to the youth
It’s a big week for young people taking on powerful entities for the environment. On Monday, a judge sided with young activists in Montana who said the government was violating the state constitution with pro-fossil fuel policies. The plaintiffs’ argument was that the state’s policies infringed on their right to a healthy and safe environment. The judge’s ruling means they were right.
I wondered whether something similar could happen here.
The state’s The Environmental Rights Amendment, added to the New York Constitution in Jan. 2022, says, “Each person shall have a right to clean air and water, and a healthful environment.”
It’s unclear whether legal action such as Held v. State of Montana will happen in New York.
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