FRA have welcomed news that Australia’s carbon forests are being linked to the EU’s ETS to help encourage investment in the carbon offsetting tool.

Seattle, United States, September 4, 2012 — Forestry Research Associates (FRA) have welcomed news that Australia’s carbon forests are being linked to the EU’s ETS to help encourage investment in the carbon offsetting tool.

The move is also being greeted warmly by the country’s carbon offsetting pioneer, Greenfleet, which said that the change will bring plenty of credibility to its carbon forest scheme. Greenfleet CEO, Sarah Gipton, explained, “It brings greater simplicity to the scheme; and linking to the more established market means Australia will benefit from the EU experience and Australian carbon project developers can tap into a larger market.”

She went on to add: “We are confident that investment in Australian carbon forests that offer additional biodiversity benefits will continue to rise as liable parties build their carbon management portfolios.”

Ms Gipton issued a statement talking about the relatively new asset class of investing in carbon offsetting. She explained that most savvy investors will take the ‘portfolio approach when making investments to deal with the risks. This is the same as any other asset class – it’s always a good idea to hedge your bets with a diverse portfolio, claims FRA’s analysis partner, Peter Collins.

Greenfleet is a forest abatement organization that helps businesses to offset their carbon emissions by planting trees. FRA supports this kind of project and also investment in forestry via sustainable plantations, which can also help to businesses and individual investors to offset their carbon emissions – while making healthy returns.

“Investing in plantations through forestry managers like Greenwood Management, which runs plantations in Brazil and Canada, is a great way to give a little back while making your cash work harder for you.”

Forestry investment tend to perform better than stocks and bonds and the demand for timber and charcoal products is rising off the back of growing economies of India, China and Japan.

About Forestry Research Associates

Forestry Research Associates is a research and advisory consultancy that focuses on forestry management, sustainability issues and forestry investment around the globe.

Media Contact:
Peter Collins
Forestry Research Associates
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