Hampshire based Carbon-info.org has released a new report, which highlights controversial carbon offsetting practices, punctures the ‘carbon neutral’ claim while celebrating the power of tree planting.

The report: “About Trees, Carbon Offsetting and ‘Green’ Marketing”, has been described as a “tour de force”. In just 29 pages, the report emphasises the power of trees to absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

Based on real research data, the author of the report successfully develops a generic tree, which is used to explore some of the claims made by carbon offsetting companies and to prove that the carbon offsetting industry is turning people off tree planting by making unsubstantiated claims and in some cases demonstrating a lack of knowledge of their own offsetting products.

“Tree planting is a very powerful tool in the fight against climate change,” said Carbon-info.org’s Chairman Flemming Bermann. “Unfortunately, for-profit organisations are giving tree planting a bad name, though we hope our new report will change this and get people planting.”

While the Government and the Office of Fair Trading continues to investigate the practices of the carbon offsetting industry and the industry itself has tried to introduce a voluntary code of practice, it is still possible to find sites that promotes ‘carbon neutral’ products.

The report uncovers one example of a “carbon neutral“ product, which in the short term lead to a significant increase in atmospheric CO2 levels rather than reducing these and making the purchaser carbon neutral.

“About Trees, Carbon Offsetting and ‘Green’ Marketing” can be downloaded directly from Carbon-info.org’s web-site and costs just Ł9.50 incl. 15% VAT.