Yes – Carbon offsets are totally real; if you get them from a reputable seller.

WHAT IS A CARBON OFFSET?:

Basically, a carbon offset is just like it sounds; it offsets your personal carbon, more indirectly than directly though. You buy a specific amount of offsets from say, a wind energy company and the money you give allows the company to work harder to create cleaner energy, thus offsetting your footprint in a way. If you put up solar panels or wind turbine at your home, you’d be offsetting your own carbon, but in many cases it’s less trouble for people to purchase offsets than make huge changes on their own.

Example: if you buy carbon offset credits from TerraPass, your money goes to cover various types of projects – farm power, landfill gas capture and wind energy. The credit makes up for some of the energy you use.

Wired did a nice little piece that can help you understand carbon offsets and offers a view from the other side. This article covers some good examples of airline credits – i.e. what it would take for a frequent (or even infrequent flier) to offset the emissions of a typical flight. It also covers why calculations for offsets and education about offsets needs to be better, more sound, and more comprehensive.

ARE CARBON OFFSETS REGULATED?:

No, and obviously, this is a problem. It makes it hard for consumers to make smart choices about carbon credits. Any old Joe can set up a program online that says they sell carbon offsets, but it doesn’t make it so.  Also, as noted by Wired (in the above piece) calculations need to be accurate, yet there’s no across the board standard.

Next up – what to do if you’d like to purchase credits – how to choose a company and make sure they’re safe and actually doing good earth-friendly tasks with your money.

Have you ever purchased carbon offsets?

[image via stock.xchng]

Yes – Carbon offsets are totally real; if you get them from a reputable seller.

WHAT IS A CARBON OFFSET?:

Basically, a carbon offset is just like it sounds; it offsets your personal carbon, more indirectly than directly though. You buy a specific amount of offsets from say, a wind energy company and the money you give allows the company to work harder to create cleaner energy, thus offsetting your footprint in a way. If you put up solar panels or wind turbine at your home, you’d be offsetting your own carbon, but in many cases it’s less trouble for people to purchase offsets than make huge changes on their own.

Example: if you buy carbon offset credits from TerraPass, your money goes to cover various types of projects – farm power, landfill gas capture and wind energy. The credit makes up for some of the energy you use.

Wired did a nice little piece that can help you understand carbon offsets and offers a view from the other side. This article covers some good examples of airline credits – i.e. what it would take for a frequent (or even infrequent flier) to offset the emissions of a typical flight. It also covers why calculations for offsets and education about offsets needs to be better, more sound, and more comprehensive.

ARE CARBON OFFSETS REGULATED?:

No, and obviously, this is a problem. It makes it hard for consumers to make smart choices about carbon credits. Any old Joe can set up a program online that says they sell carbon offsets, but it doesn’t make it so.  Also, as noted by Wired (in the above piece) calculations need to be accurate, yet there’s no across the board standard.

Next up – what to do if you’d like to purchase credits – how to choose a company and make sure they’re safe and actually doing good earth-friendly tasks with your money.

Have you ever purchased carbon offsets?

[image via stock.xchng]