A carbon offset deal could see Liberia concede 10 percent of its territory to a private Emirati company, extinguishing customary land rights and giving the United Arab Emirates (UAE) pollution rights equivalent to the forest’s carbon sequestration.
The deal would give the company blanket control over one million hectares of forest. The company would then “harvest” carbon credits, supposedly from restoring and protecting the land, which they would then sell onto major polluters to offset their emissions.
If signed, the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) would violate a number of Liberian laws, including the 2019 land rights law, a legislation that asserts communities’ right to “customary land”.
It would also concede near total control of one of the most densely forested territories in Africa to the Dubai-based firm Blue Carbon for a period of 30 years.
Additionally, the deal would prevent Liberia from using the land to meet its own international climate targets.
This is some truly demented stuff. Can't the UAE just find some of its own land to "preserve" and sell carbon credits off of?
UAE is mostly arid desert. They also built an american suburb style car dependent economy. The logic of carbon footprint is stupid idea made up by oil and gas companies and the idea of selling and buying "carbon credits" is even more schizophrenic. Almost like in a megachurch, you can buy your forgivness with money.
They should ask
for some notes on dedesertification.