PCFE Trends, Issues, Drivers, and Related Factors 13
associated with travel or automobile use. Money from the sale of carbon
offset credits is applied to environmental clean-up, planting of trees, and
other ways of reducing climate change. Carbon credits are also traded like
traditional securities and commodities via groups such as the Chicago Cli-
mate Exchange (www.chicagoclimateexchange.com). One way of thinking
about carbon credits is to consider them the way you would a parking or
speeding ticket: What would it take (stiffer fines, jail time) to make you
change your driving habits?
A controversial use of carbon credits is associated with green washing,”
the practice of using carbon credits to offset or even hide energy use or lack
of energy efficiency ...