How to Buy Carbon Credits

By Meredith Simonds

Rate: (3 Ratings)

As verified by thousands of scientists all over the world, human-produced carbon dioxide is contributing to climate change that is threatening the health of the world. The first practical response is to eliminate as many carbon-producing activities as possible. The second step is to offset the emissions we cannot eliminate by purchasing carbon credits, which means you are making an investment in carbon reduction projects.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Step1
Calculate your carbon footprint. You can search online under “calculate my carbon footprint” and find dozens of websites that ask you a series of questions to determine just how much carbon dioxide your lifestyle is emitting into the atmosphere. It’s this number that determines how many carbon credits you need to buy to offset your carbon-producing activity. Every carbon calculator is different. Ideally, you can find one such as the Nature Conservancy’s Online Carbon Calculator, which accounts for home energy, driving, flying, food, diet, recycling and waste.
Step2
Check with your utility company to see if they have a carbon offsetting program. You can deduct any carbon credits you purchase through your electric company from the overall carbon footprint you offset with an online carbon credit provider.
Step3
Decide on the types of projects that want your carbon credit purchase to support. Choose from tree planting projects to recreate natural forests and prevent deforestation; renewable energy projects, such as solar, wind, hydroelectric and biofuel; energy conservation projects aimed at reducing the overall demand for energy and methane projects, using the methane from farms, landfills and other industrial waste to create energy.
Step4
Research carbon credit providers. Visit EcoBusinessLinks, a website that compares carbon credit providers based on your non-profit status, carbon credit prices, the project types that your investment will support, your ability to designate your investment to a specific project and independent product certification, meaning that a third party has determined that your investment will offset emissions.
Step5
Make yourself carbon neutral by purchasing your carbon credits from the carbon credit provider of your choice.
Step6
Reduce your carbon footprint so that you can buy fewer carbon credits next time. Replace all of your incandescent light bulbs with CFL’s. Join a carpool. Buy locally-grown organic food. Install solar panels. Start your own compost pile in the backyard. Reduce. Reuse. Recycle.

Tips & Warnings

  • For every ton of carbon dioxide you emit into the air, you can purchase a carbon credit for between $5 and $50 to offset the emission. Price varies with each carbon credit provider, so research first and choose wisely.
  • Carbon credits should not be treated as free tickets to pollute. Ideally, they’re purchased after you have reduced or eliminated as many carbon-producing activities as is practically possible.

Comments

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on 6/26/2008 Greenhouse gases destroy our Earths Ecosystem. High levels of CO2 gas (carbon dioxide) are a major cause of Global Warming. Major contributors of greenhouse gases are fully vented landfills and septic systems. Sweetfilter Zeocarbon septic vent pipe filters remove odors and greenhouse gases for up to 5 years. Then they are recycled as an ornamental gardening, nitrogen rich, fertilizer. It takes up to one year for one tree to fix the CO2 in the equivalent of 3 litres of gas. Vent pipe filters can do the same thing in one day, every day, for up to 5 years.

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on 6/20/2008 Good point, dorunrun. And thanks, intimidavid for the link.

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on 6/20/2008 Good point, dorunrun. And thanks, intimidavid for the link.

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on 6/20/2008 Very good, thorough article. I'm goint to link to it.

dorunrun said

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on 6/18/2008 It's my opinion that when carbon credits are invested in wind and solar farms, you're paying for someone else's business interest since they earn monthly revenue from the electricity they produce. I prefer to buy carbon credits from a company like EnviroFX - http://www.envirofx.com - because they invest in reforestation, cleaning watersheds, and educating the public.

Businesses will create wind and solar farms because they are profitable. Clean water and reforesting clearcut lands is not so profitable so they cold use the financial support.

Just my opinion though.

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eHow Article:  How to Buy Carbon Credits

eHow Member: Meredith Simonds

Meredith Simonds

Novice Novice | 0 Points

Category: Health

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