Signal1: Urban Carbon Credit Programs

Eve Marenghi
Sep 8, 2018 · 1 min read

Austin, Texas and King County, Washington are piloting carbon credit programs to protect urban trees. Metropolitan areas in the US are losing about 36 million trees each year. Planting trees is cost prohibitive for cities, and climate change is negatively affecting tree growth.

To secure funding for urban trees, Austin and King County are partnering with a nonprofit called City Forest Credits. Private companies and individuals can offset their carbon emissions by buying credits generated by tree planting or preservation. The credits will quantify carbon benefits of urban trees as well as rainfall interception, energy savings from heating and cooling effects, and air-quality benefits.

The program is harnessing the power of the market to create environmental benefits in cities. Emissions goals, such as Austin aiming to be carbon neutral in government operations by 2020, and NYC planning to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40% in 2030, are becoming more common.

Though results form the pilot program in Austin and King County still need to be quantified, there is evidence to suggest urban carbon credit programs can help cities reach emissions goals while preserving green spaces to improve life for city dwellers.