STEP #48

Buy Carbon Offsets

Although we live in a petroleum age, America can kick its oil addiction in everyday activities such as eating, driving, flying, staying cool or warm, typing an e-mail, or reading under a light.

Still, even the greenest of us continue to use oil in a variety of ways, ultimately producing more greenhouse gasses, which are considered a major cause ofglobal warming.

Fortunately, there are many companies that help counteract carbon dioxide emissions by supporting carbon-crushing green initiatives around the world, such as wind and solar energy development and tree planting.

In fact, being “carbon neutral” has become so trendy that the New Oxford American Dictionary proclaimed “carbon neutral” as its Word of the Year for 2006.

Online airline reservation sites, such as British Airways and travel site Expedia, offer the choice to add a payment of a few bucks with a click of the mouse, giving travelers the choice to support save-the-earth initiatives to offset environmental damage caused by the trip. Other companies like Google, HSBC Bank and Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream are proclaiming their efforts to become carbon neutral. Even the Dave Matthews Band makes donations to green causes to offset all the carbon emissions caused by the travel and energy use from its tours going back to 1991.

Carbon offsetting has grown tremendously since the 2006 release of Al Gore’s documentary An Inconvenient Truth, which worked to offset all the carbon dioxide emissions generated through its production.

Supporters point out that carbon offsetting builds awareness and a sense of responsibility for an individual’s carbon footprint. Dollars spent on carbon offsetting projects create markets for developing new green technologies and projects that can have a significant impact on reducing and eliminating carbon emissions. For example, in 2006, the National Football League bought renewable wind energy to offset the 58 tons of carbon dioxide produced during a game in St. Louis. This large purchase of wind energy created substantial revenues for future wind power generation, research, and development.

Two groups that live up to their claims include www.carbonfund.org, a nonprofit endeavor that supports renewable energy, energy efficiency and reforestation projects globally that reduce carbon dioxide emissions and the threat of climate change, and www.terrapass.com, a resource that has helped individuals and businesses reduce more than 1 billion pounds of carbon dioxide since its inception in 2004. Both are funding huge numbers of renewable energy projects throughout the country while making a difference by working with industries to effect large-scale energy savings. All of this has an impact on our energy needs by helping us use less oil, coal, natural gas, and other fossil fuels.

However, critics say that buying offsets alleviates guilt without encouraging people to change their high-carbon lifestyles and argue that some offsets don’t actually produce enough change in our habits. Nevertheless, the argument that carbon offsets aren’t doing as much good as they should can easily be put into perspective. Consider this: several years ago, virtually nobody was making carbon offsets, and there was much less capital to help grow these promising new green energy markets and carbon-neutralizing activities.

The bottom line is buying carbon offsets does make a difference, even if you don’t offset in exact proportion to the carbon dioxide you produce. When you decide where to purchase offsets, you should heed the same “buyer beware” instincts that you use when shopping for any product.

The following suggestions will help you discern the best companies from the rest:

• Be sure the organization or company provides specific details about the offsetting activities your dollars will support.
• Check for scientific evidence that shows those activities sequester or prevent carbon dioxide or methane emissions.
• Look for endorsements from key oversight and certification organizations such as the Center for Resource Solutions.

Green-e—a leading independent consumer protection program for the sale of renewable energy and greenhouse gas reductions in the retail market—is currently developing a certification standard for carbon offset providers. And as more people strive for carbon neutrality, we are bound to see more consumer audit and review resources to help us sort through the rapidly growing business of carbon offsets.

Meanwhile, you can feel good about buying offsets for yourself or as a gift for loved ones, knowing that each offset purchased is a gift to future generations as well.