CARBON COWBOYS

MAF warnings about shoddy ETS advice

The normally conservative New Zealand Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF) has been raising the potential for dishonest practices because of the complexities of the ETS legislation at forums for forest owners and forestry consultants.

MAF says many consultant-prepared applications have been inaccurate and, at times, “quite shoddy” in their content. In some cases consultants had apparently registered forest owners’ Carbon Accounting Areas (CAA) and Emission Returns, without making their clients fully aware of the associated liabilities.

Ministry staff say a mix of registered and unregistered forestry consultants and the new breed of ‘carbon consultant’ were linked to the applications of concern.

The New Zealand Institute of Forestry has taken up the cudgels and warned registered consultants of their obligations and ethical responsibilities. MAF spokesman Bruce Anderson says there has been a noticeable improvement in the standard of filed applications since the issue was first raised.

Meanwhile, there are reports of dissatisfaction with the fees some consulting companies are charging for ETS registration services. One large firm is quoting up to NZ$3000 for what amounts to filling out the MAF online form. (The ministry went to great lengths to design the system so any reasonably computer-literate person could register their own forest and claim carbon credits.