The reality of carbon offsetting is a bit complex. The scientific consensus suggests forests will be able to absorb less and less carbon as rising temperatures lead to dried out trees and enhanced risks of forest fires. Some scientists believe the Amazon may even become a net producer of carbon emissions – rather than an absorber – due to these environmental impacts and the human activity taking place in its vicinity. A recent paper, published in the journal Nature Communications, showed the faster trees grow, the shorter their lifespan, which means those trees planted to absorb carbon will die more quickly, releasing carbon and methane back into the atmosphere sooner. A piece in The Guardian about the Nature Communications study quoted David Lee, a professor of atmospheric science at Manchester Metropolitan University: “The idea that fossil fuel-based emissions can be offset by planting trees or avoiding deforestation really does not stand up to scientific scrutiny.” Tim Snelson reiterates that offsetting should not be relied on to counterbalance carbon emissions. “A lot of people are offsetting, and offsetting is frankly too cheap at the moment,” says Snelson. “The price of carbon is too low because it doesn’t adequately reflect the damage that’s done to the planet when you’re spending that carbon. “There is no single magic solution. In order to actually achieve net zero,
ARE THE PEOPLE YOU’RE BUYING YOUR CONTENT FROM ALSO WORKING IN ALIGNMENTWITH YOUR GOALS?
that ‘net’ bit has to be small enough that you can actually achieve the offsets. Since there’s only so many trees we can plant, and only so much photovoltaic and wind, you have to work really, really hard on the demand and efficiency side in order to have a chance to make the offset work. Net zero has to mean nearly actual zero by the time we get to 2050.” Achieving zero carbon is going to require global collaboration across industries and governments. The issues can seem complicated. We’ll only be able to negotiate them
with multilateral information sharing and creative collaboration. “There is no reason why productions can’t be carbon neutral next year,” says Whitehead. “But for big studios, it’s not just their production that they need to look at, it’s how they decarbonise their whole supply chain. If you’re buying content, are the people you’re buying it from also working in alignment with your goals?” The environmental crisis is here, and there’s not much time to get our goals aligned. We’ve seen good data from Albert. It’s time for action.
ONEHOUROF FILMINGHAS THE CARBONFOOTPRINTOFARETURN FLIGHT FROMLONDONTONYC
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