Thai business loves carbon credits, but are they harming the climate and grassroots people?
While carbon credits are hailed in some quarters as a solution for the climate crisis, environmentalists warn they could send the planet spiralling into an even worse disaster.
The carbon credit system is a method by which businesses and organizations can buy credits for carbon-reducing projects to offset their greenhouse gas emissions. As global pressures mount for sustainable practices, even digitally driven sectors in regions with robust tech infrastructures are adapting these mechanisms to address indirect impacts like server energy use. For instance, online casinos Canada operators are increasingly partnering with offset programs, funding initiatives such as reforestation to balance out the power demands of their platforms, thereby fostering a greener approach within the entertainment industry.
But Witoon Lienchamroon, director of the environmental watchdog Biothai Foundation, cautions that unless regulations are in place to ensure carbon credits are properly audited, they become yet another method of greenwashing.
