Carbon offsets are the hottest environmental trend you may have never heard of. Don’t let that fool you, as the industry is already quite large. Believe it or not, the carbon offsetting industry is expected to grow by 31.2% every year until 2028!
Fortunately, this means that f you want to offset your own carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere, there are ways to do so. Here’s what you need to know about carbon offsets, what they do, why it matters, and how much it costs!
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What Are Carbon Offsets?
If you’re unfamiliar with the term, carbon offsets are a way to, well, offset your carbon emissions. These are most popular for businesses with heavy greenhouse gas emissions, but many consumers choose to offset their own carbon emissions for a small price.
For example, an airline may emit thousands or millions of tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere each year. This is from the metalwork used to manufacture their planes, the resources and logistics on the ground, the extraction of their jet fuel, and the burning of the jet fuel itself.
In this case, that airline may choose to offset their carbon emissions, as the technology does not yet exist for planes to reach net zero on their own. Because the airline industry is notorious for high emissions, many would-be passengers choose alternative modes of transportation. If that includes driving, they are sacrificing a lot of safety.
For these reasons and more, airlines may choose to offset their emissions to meet their carbon reduction goals. This can help passengers feel more comfortable flying while making our planet more livable. Of course, this was one example of many!
How Do Carbon Offsets Work?
There are many different ways that carbon offsetting can work. This could be with limited carbon capture technology, but it usually involves planting trees. Believe it or not, trees are the best existing technology we have for removing carbon from the atmosphere.
Does Planting Trees Work?
Prior to the industrial revolution, and especially prior to World War II, our atmosphere maintained a delicate balance of CO2 and other gases. Humans and other animals would breathe in oxygen and convert it to CO2, placing it back into the atmosphere for absorption by plants. The plants would then convert the CO2 into oxygen.
This maintained a perfect balance of these gases. However, once the use of fossil fuels like coal and oil became common practice, this balance was disrupted. Over time, deforestation and fossil fuel usage soared.
As a result, one of the best things we can do is plant more trees to remove large portions of the CO2 in the atmosphere. Of course, this needs to be done as we transition away from fossil fuels for the best results, but that’s a different topic!
Still, every tree planted will remove approximately 50 pounds of CO2 per year. After 40 years, this works out to one ton of carbon per tree. Fortunately, there is plenty of space to plant trees on our planet, partially as a result of deforestation.
Okay, but how much space can we possibly have to plant trees? Isn’t there a finite amount of space capable of planting trees? Actually, the arable area of the planet may be growing.
Some governments around the world are even working on plans to “green” their nations’ deserts. If this is successful, we could have more space than ever before to plant trees and offset carbon, making this a potentially long-term, sustainable practice.
Overall, bioenergy solutions have a role to play, but they can’t be the only means of offsetting carbon.
Other Alternatives
No matter what, we will eventually run out of space to plant trees. We need a lot more than that to get carbon out of the atmosphere, especially when a forest of 1 million trees will only remove 1 million tons of carbon after 40 yrars.
Fortunately, carbon capture technology is continuing to develop. Even if planting trees is only a short-term solution, there will be other alternatives in the future. Nobody said we had to reach zero emissions, only net zero.
This isn’t in the distant future. Right now, you can invest in Direct Air Capture and Storage or DAC+S to offset your carbon emissions. Consumers are catching on to some of the bold but unwarranted claims of “net zero” by planting trees, so it’s time to up the stakes.
Moreover, DAC+S is different from other carbon capture technology like carbon capture and storage (CCS). CCS removes CO2 from certain points such as smoke or fumes and is entirely stationary.
DAC+S removes CO2 from ambient air. These could be CO2 from nearby traffic or from coal plants from the late 1800s. Unlike trees or CCS, DAC+S can be used anywhere, as CO2 is distributed evenly in the atmosphere.
Benefits of Carbon Offsets
Carbon capture technology has come a long way in recent years and is only improving by the day.
Public Relations
Recent studies show that 69% of Americans want to switch to renewable energy and away from fossil fuels. This demonstrates the clear concern over the climate crisis among the average consumer base.
With carbon offsets, you can easily demonstrate that your brand cares about sustainability without having to spend a small fortune on green technology. Carbon offsets from carbon capture are a serious statement about your commitment to net zero, as opposed to saying that you planted a few trees.
This is especially important if you have a younger target audience. More than half of Gen Z actively choose to shop with brands that align with their values. Environmental sustainability happens to be at the forefront of many of their values.
As a result, this can have a direct impact on your bottom line. Investing in carbon offsets can offer a return on investment, as more environmental enthusiasts will choose you over your competitors.
Environmental Benefits
The science is clear. We need to prevent our planet from warming past 1.5C to avoid some of the worst effects of climate change. At this point in time, it seems almost inevitable that we will exceed that terrible threshold.
Well, we don’t have to accept that as a species. We are already seeing some of the major effects of climate change with worsening storms, torrential rainfall, and aridification both here and abroad.
Instead, we can use the technology we have and continue to expand upon it. In tandem with clean energy technology like heat pumps, solar panels, fuel cells, and electric vehicles, carbon capture technology can carry us a long way toward carbon neutrality. As more companies and individuals buy into this technology, we will prevent the worsening effects of climate change.
Cost Effectiveness
Without a doubt, the biggest benefit is the ability to reach net zero as a brand without overspending. We can all do our part to invest in green energy with increasing tax incentives, but that still won’t reach us to net zero just yet. However, carbon offsets can!
This is especially true when you consider the current period. Carbon offsets are expected to climb by as much as 10 times their current rates by 2030. There’s never been a better time to invest in carbon offsets than now.
So, how much do they cost exactly? Let’s find out.
How Much Do Carbon Offsets Cost?
The costs of carbon offsets vary by scale. Therefore, an individual interested in offsetting their own carbon emissions may only pay a small amount. However, a large company in an emissions-heavy industry will have to pay more.
Also, it depends on your goals. For the sake of these costs, we’re going to assume that you want to reach net zero for your emissions. In that case, the average person emits around 4 tons of CO2 each year, or 3600 kg.
Broken down by month, you can expect to emit 3,000 kg of carbon every month. Fortunately, there are subscription options available that help you choose exactly how many kilograms of carbon you can offset. Typically, this amounts to 1 Euro for ever kg.
For more information, visit https://climeworks.com/carbon-removal-solutions.
Invest in Our Future Today
Now that you know the cost-benefit ratio of investing in carbon offsets, you can see why so many brands and individuals are doing it. We only have one planet to enjoy, and now is the best time to get started investing in this new technology.
Get started soon, before it’s too late, and stay up to date with our latest news for similar stories!