A carbon footprint is a summary of the greenhouse gas emissions produced as a result of a specific activity or over a specific period of time. Typical examples include the carbon footprint of a company's annual operations, the carbon footprint of an airplane flight, or the carbon footprint of a consumer retail product. A carbon footprint will typically include both direct emissions from a product or activity (for example from gas consumption) and indirect emissions generated by producers or suppliers.
Why should I (and my organization) measure my carbon footprint?
Measuring your carbon footprint helps you identify those activities that have the greatest impact on global warming, and is the first step to developing an effective emissions reduction plan. Identifying areas of high carbon emissions is also a good way highlight potential cost savings. For many organizations, a carbon footprint report may be required by corporate customers, investors or government agencies.
Aren't carbon management and offsetting expensive?
Measuring and reducing your carbon footprint doesn't have to cost a lot of money. In fact, many carbon reduction measures will also cut your energy or transport bill and will pay for themselves in weeks or months. With increasing government regulation and investor pressure to address carbon, not taking action may cost you even more. Carbon Clear has measured and reduced the carbon footprints of hundreds of organizations, and uses established processes to deliver results at lower cost.
Why do different carbon calculators give different results?
Flight calculators may use different techniques to measure the distance an aircraft travels, and include different estimates of the climate change impact of high altitude flights. The UK government calculator, for example, automatically adds to the flight distance to account for airport congestion. Carbon Clear calculates distance using the actual latitude and longitude of specific airports, plus an increment to account for airport congestion and indirect routes. Uncertainty about the additional global warming impact of high-altitude aircraft also leads to different calculator results. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change estimates that flight emissions have up to 2.7 times the global warming impact of ground-level emissions, and at least one calculator claims that aircraft emissions have four times the impact. The UK Government recommends a multiplier of 1.9, but has tended to use a multiplier of 1.0 on its own calculator. Carbon Clear has traditionally used the same 1.0 multiplier, but have recently opted to use the IPCC recommended factor of 2.7.
What can I and my company do to fight climate change?
Nearly every activity results in some greenhouse gas emissions. The first step for any individual or company is to measure their carbon footprint and develop a reduction plan. See the consumer section [link] of our website and our blog [link] for tips to help individuals reduce their carbon footprint. For businesses, Carbon Clear's carbon management team is the first stop for cost-effective ways to lower your footprint. We help companies reduce the need for polluting activities and save money by increasing energy and resource efficiency. Carbon Clear also help businesses find lower-carbon alternatives that will lower their footprint, and provide carbon offset credits to achieve external carbon emission reductions.
I buy green electricity – isn't that zero carbon?
Carbon Clear has researched this issue in depth and, unfortunately, renewable electricity purchased in the United Kingdom does not count as zero-carbon. Most renewable electricity suppliers in the UK sell Renewable Obligation Certificates to fossil fuel utilities to help the fossil suppliers meet government targets. One way to think of it is that they earn extra money swapping some of their renewable electricity for fossil fuel electricity. This is helpful because it gives additional financial incentives for renewables, but as a result, the electricity emissions factors we use in our carbon calculators already take into account the renewable generators. Unless you produce our own electricity, the electricity coming from your wall socket has the same emissions profile as any other.
Does offsetting really reduce emissions?
Carbon credits, or carbon offsets represent a reduction or avoidance of greenhouse gas emissions. For example, an offset project could reduce the emissions from cooking on dirty stoves in Sudan. These reductions can be used to offset emissions from other activities, such as driving a car.
Without the emissions reduction or carbon offset project, we might be facing for example, three tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions per year from a car in Europe AND from dirty traditional stoves in Sudan. The car driver can choose to leave the car at home and ride her bike instead. Then we would save three tonnes of CO2 from the car, but the dirty stoves would continue polluting. In an ideal world, we would reduce emissions from both sources, but the poor households simply cannot afford to make the switch. Alternatively, the car driver could pay to replace two dirty stoves in Sudan with a much cleaner variety – this is an offset. Then we would save three tonnes of CO2 from the stoves, but not the car. Either way, we have reduced global CO2 emissions by three tonnes, but in the second case, the driver is happier because she values driving her car, and the Sudanese households are happier because they have cleaner stoves, save money and have healthier families. Careful monitoring is required to ensure that the emissions reductions occur as expected.
Shouldn't offsetting be a last resort?
The time lags in the global environment mean that it takes years for our actions to be reflected in worldwide temperatures. As a result, we simply cannot afford to wait until all possible internal reduction measures have been exhausted before using external reductions (offsets). Carbon Clear recommends that companies and individuals seek the fastest, most cost-effective and credible reductions, wherever they may occur. In many cases, the best reductions will come from internal operational improvements. In other cases, they will come from changes in the corporate supply chain. And in many other cases the most cost-effective will come from high quality offsets that achieve external reductions beyond the corporate boundary.
Is carbon offsetting the solution to climate change?
There is no one "silver bullet" that will solve the threat of climate change. It is one of a large collection of partial solutions. Climate change is such an immense threat that it does us no good to fight it with one hand tied behind our back - we have to use all the tools at our disposal. Carbon offsetting has a role to play in helping identify effective emissions reductions in the short term while we gear up for longer term societal changes. What is more, offsets provide funding for much-needed investments in developing countries around the world where communities are already starting to bear the brunt of climate change impacts.
Why do carbon offsets have different prices?
Carbon offset prices are a reflection of the cost to implement carbon reduction projects in different parts of the world, the different certification and verification costs for various project types, and the need for Carbon Clear to ensure a consistently high level of service regardless of the size of the offset purchase.
What is additionality? [see Carbon Jargon]
Additionality means that the emissions reduction project would not have happened without a carbon offset investment. We generally work in communities where people simply can't afford the up-front investment required for a lower-carbon technology. In many cases, we provide nearly 100% of project costs. On the other hand, if the project would have occurred without us - great - we'll let them get on with it and instead use our customer's money where it will make a real difference.
Climate change is a huge problem. How can I possibly make a difference?
Each business and individual has a role to play in tackling climate change. Current greenhouse gas levels are a result of billions of individual decisions – to drive a particular car, cut a particular tree, use a certain type of fuel, or raise a specific type of livestock. In the same way, billions of individual actions can help reduce emissions – in fact, that's the only way we can achieve significant global emission reductions.
How does Carbon Clear differ from other carbon offset companies?
Carbon Clear stands out because of our experience, credibility, and depth. Carbon Clear was established by environmental and international development professionals, not marketers or traders. This means that we don't have to buy our carbon credits from brokers - we have the expertise to work directly with local project teams to develop carbon reduction projects. And that direct connection means we know exactly how your carbon offsetting money is spent. On the carbon footprint consulting side of our business, our experience means that we can provide your measurement and reduction advice ourselves, instead of passing the work on to subcontractors. Finally, we lead by example – Carbon Clear is the first (and to date the only) carbon management company with an ISO 14001 – certified environmental management system. Environmental protection isn't just something we sell – it's integrated into how we run our business.
How does Carbon Clear choose carbon offset projects?
Carbon Clear only funds carbon offset projects that meet our strict quality criteria. In fact, we reject most of the project proposals that we receive. We work with NGOs, aid agencies and local entrepreneurs to identify carbon reducing projects that deliver both livelihood and environmental benefits to local communities. If you have a project you feel we might want to support, please visit our projects pages and contact us.
Why doesn't Carbon Clear fund carbon offset projects in my country?
Carbon Clear only funds carbon offset projects in countries that don't have binding greenhouse gas reduction targets under the Kyoto Protocol. In countries with binding reduction targets, governments can automatically claim the carbon rights from any emission reductions that we fund. If we lose the rights to those reductions, we cannot sell those offsets to you.
How does Carbon Clear measure carbon footprints?
Carbon Clear bases its carbon footprint measurements on the ISO 14064 standard. ISO 14064 is essentially identical to the older WRI/ GHG Protocol employed by the Carbon Disclosure Project, and we will use the older standard if requested. Carbon Clear calculates emissions by looking at the main activities that release greenhouse gases into the atmosphere – transport, energy consumption, resource use. Then we use internationally recognised conversion factors to determine how the CO2 emissions that activity represents.
Is Carbon Clear a for-profit company or a charity?
Carbon Clear is an ethical for-profit company. We firmly believe that business success and environmental stewardship go hand-in-hand and want to encourage others with our example.
In 2007, over 75% of our revenue went to source, invest in and verify carbon reduction projects. The rest covered Carbon Clear's essential administrative, audit, marketing, financing costs, and of course taxes. Our ability to work directly with local project teams means we can direct more of your money to activities on the ground instead of brokers.
Do you run the carbon offset projects yourselves?
The Carbon Clear team has years of experience creating and managing local development projects around the world. However, we believe that the people best suited to run these projects on a day-to-day basis are local development specialists and entrepreneurs. These are people who have been working in those communities for a long time. That's why we work with organisations that have had a long-term presence in the countries where we source our offsets. Rather than just buying credits, we are using carbon finance to support projects that would otherwise not have happened.
Who are your project partners?
Carbon Clear works directly with a wide variety of local non-governmental organisations (NGOs), private entrepreneurs in developing countries, and with international NGOs with a local presence. Our staff includes international development experts who understand what it means to work in poor communities and can help structure carbon reduction projects that deliver lasting local benefits.
Is Carbon Clear independently audited and verified?
Yes. All of our sustainable energy projects comply with independent certification standards – either the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), the Voluntary Carbon Standard (VCS), or the Gold Standard. Carbon Clear is a founding member of ICROA –the International Carbon Reduction and Offsetting Alliance. ICROA requires members to comply with its Code of Practice and submit an annual compliance report for third party review. Both Carbon Clear's carbon credit registry and financial accounts are independently reviewed on an annual basis. Where they exist, we use independent third-party registries to hold and retire our carbon credits. Our environmental management system also undergoes an annual audit. Carbon Clear's carbon footprint work is performed to ISO 14064 standards, and some of our customers choose to submit their carbon footprint reports for third-party verification. And of course, Carbon Clear is evaluated by external league tables, including the Ends Report on Carbon Offsets 2008, which rated Carbon Clear among only a handful of "Quality Offset Providers".
