Lately I have been hearing more and more about neutralizing carbon emissions, emissions trading and offsetting emissions. In essence, they are all talking about the same thing--giving back what you are taking. Let me explain better...
Harmful greenhouse gases (GHG) are released when you do things such as burn fossil fuels or even from the belches/farts of cows. When we drive our cars, fly on a plane or have a wedding, we release tons and tons of harmful carbon dioxide and other GHG. In order to mitigate the harmful environmental effects of the increased concentration of GHG, specifically methane and carbon dioxide, you can choose to neutralize your emissions by purchasing shares of renewable energy. By doing this, the conventional electricity supply is supplemented with renewable energy, thus decrease the consumption of conventional electricity and replacing it with renewable. This has two effects--it reduces the use of fossil fuels for electric generation (ie coal-fired power plants) and secondly, the non-energy environmental attributes of green energy are added (ie the environmental benefits of reduce fossil-fuel pollution being replaced by non-harmful renewable energy). Remember, it is not just wind-energy that is renewable--dairy farms can install digesters where they turn cow manure rich in nutrients into methane gas. Geothermal, hydro, solar, yada yada yada....
So, every time renewable energy is generated it has two effects--the electric supplies goes into the grid and the non-energy attributes are sold as a carbon neutralizer in the form of a certificate. In most cases (the smart cases!), this ceritificate is what people have purchased to offset their emissions--they are offsetting the negative environmental repricussions of their actions by purchasing the positive effects of the renewable energy sectors generation. Make sense?
Now it goes on from here. Major industries trade emissions on the Chicago Climate Exchange (like the NY Stock Exchange, but for ghg emissions) where companies that have not "spent" all their allowable emissions can sell it to companies that have gone over their allotted amount.
All this being explained....offsetting your carbon emissions is must EASIER and CHEAPER than I thought. I was expecting to have to pay a substantial sum of money to offset my emissions from driving, flying and general household electric consumption. Now, I am rather thrifty with energy and very conscious of consumption, so I am below average for household. But, when it is all totaled for a year, I could neutralize my partner's and my TOTAL emissions for almost $300 per year! Plus, a lot of these places are non-profits so it is an excellent tax write-off. Once I saw the amount of CO2 we were emitting in tons (!), I had to! What a wonderful, easy solution to helping people go green!
