OF ALL the ideas about how to tackle climate change, paying countries in the tropics not to cut down their trees has always been one of the most controversial. First suggested in the 1990s as part of the negotiations over the UN climate change convention, the scheme was considered dead in the water when governments could not agree on it. Now it’s back on the table – and there are good reasons why it should be encouraged.
Under the scheme, developing countries would be granted “carbon credits” for any rainforests that they save from destruction. A carbon credit represents a tonne…
