16 April 2011
Carbon Conscious, an Australian company, is to establish a carbon forest sink near near Gisborne as part of an $11 million contract with an unnamed energy company.Carbon Conscious is an ASX listed business based in Perth. Because it already has contracts in Australia with Origin Energy, observers believe the deal is with Contact Energy, which is majority owned by Origin.
So far the company has planted around nine million mallee eucalypt trees in the grain belt in Western Australia. Its Gisborne planting will involve one million radiata, with planting to begin in about two months.
In a report on the Stuff Business Day website, Chief executive Peter Balsarini said the company will buy land and receive fees for planting and operating forests in New Zealand. It will also own the trees when the forest reaches maturity.
Tom Reynolds, the company's New Zealand general manager, said Carbon Conscious was in talks with other groups which had carbon costs to offset in New Zealand.
Source: Fairfax media