Lugar Farm is first in Indiana to provide carbon sequestration offsets on the Chicago Climate Exchange
Thursday, May 18, 2006
U.S. Sen. Dick Lugar’s Marion County farm is the first in Indiana to participate in the Chicago Climate Exchange.
Audio comments from the press conference are available at http://src.senate.gov/lugar/radio/ and via telephone at 1-800-545-1267; press 407 for the Lugar mailbox.
“I am pleased to announce that the Lugar Stock Farm has enrolled as an offset provider in the Chicago Climate Exchange. The Lugar Stock Farm is an active corn, soybean, and hardwood tree farm in Marion County, Indiana. Our farm will be the first in Indiana to enroll in this important exchange. I am hopeful that farmers in Indiana and elsewhere will investigate the possibility of enrolling in the exchange. This not only will encourage the practice of sequestering carbon, it will provide an additional source of farm income to those who qualify,” said Lugar.
...“As a Hoosier farmer, I seek ways to ensure the economic productivity of our farming operation. I utilize risk management tools such as federal crop insurance and commodity markets, and I seek ways to add value to the products grown on our land. Nearly 20 years ago, I began converting about 200 of the 604 acres on our farm to hardwood trees. As these majestic trees grow, they absorb and store carbon from the air around Indianapolis. Increasingly, the global community is recognizing the potential perils of climate change. The ability of farmers and others to remove carbon from the atmosphere and store it through methods such as tree farming and no-till planting are an important part of the solution,” Lugar said.
..“The Lugar Stock Farm has entered into a binding contract with the Chicago Climate Exchange to provide offset carbon credits, or carbon that entities may want to use to mitigate or offset the amount of greenhouse gasses they may produce. Based on our management practices, tree age, tree density, and other factors, the Chicago Climate Exchange estimates that our farm will capture about 3,400 metric tons of carbon in these trees. Instead of selling these offset credits directly to specific generators of carbon, the Chicago Climate Exchange operates as a market discovery mechanism similar to corn and soybean markets where willing buyers and sellers transact business based on commodity prices. The Lugar Stock Farm maintains legal ownership of these offset credits until a market decision is made to sell them on the exchange. Yesterday, carbon credits were trading at $3.50 per metric ton. Additionally, our farm is responsible for reporting any loss of trees, or the addition of trees, to ensure that carbon is being stored. Similar situations now involve U.S. livestock operations and no-till farmers,” continued Lugar.
Heres the address for the whole statement.
http://lugar.senate.gov/pressapp/record.cfm?id=255829
So.....Every time I Don't mow my lawn I gain Carbon Credits?Who will by my grass clippngs when the city makes me mow my lawn?