Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Blue Carbon Offset

Seafood Choices is offering blue carbon offsets for greenhouse gas emissions related to travel and participation of the 2012 International Seafood Summit -

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Help Us Create a Greener (and Bluer) Seafood Summit

The Ocean Foundation / Washington D.C. - Through The Ocean Foundation’s SeaGrass Grow! project, Seafood Choices is offsetting greenhouse gas emissions from the core activities of the 2012 International Seafood Summit. Seafood Choices has chosen The Ocean Foundation as an offset partner due to its focus on ocean habitats in developing a new way to naturally offset greenhouse gas emissions in the ocean – known as “Blue Carbon.”

The Ocean Foundation created SeaGrass Grow! to restore seagrass habitat that offers protection from storms and prevention of shoreline erosion, and also locally fixes carbon (to slow ocean acidification) and stores carbon (with long-term sequestration). Healthy seagrass meadows also support tourism, food security, and both commercial and recreational fishing. And, in addition to providing nurseries for fish, seagrass meadows also offer grazing opportunities for endangered sea turtles, manatees, and dugongs.

In conjunction with its work to restore lost and damaged seagrass meadows, The Ocean Foundation also works to preserve blue carbon across the globe. The Ocean Foundation hosts the Blue Climate Coalition, which seeks enhanced international recognition of the opportunities to certify carbon credits in coastal carbon ecosystems, and facilitate the inclusion of the carbon value of coastal ecosystems in the accounting of ecosystem services. Thus, The Ocean Foundation will, in the future, offer real and permanent emissions offsets that are credible, and carbon sequestration that is verifiable. Presently The Ocean Foundation is “banking” the square kilometers of restoration in anticipation of certification, and, thus will also have developed a network of demonstration projects.
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Read the full story here: http://www.seafoodchoices.org/seafoodsummit/greenerevent.php

- Posted by Sven Stadtmann, GRID-Arendal