Travelling, especially flying, produces greenhouse gases and CO2 emissions that damage the climate.[1] But CO2 compensation could help you to reduce your ecological footprint.
Travelling and CO2 emissions
Jetting to Ibiza for the weekend? Flying to New York for a shopping weekend? A quick trip to Amsterdam for a concert? For some travel it is part of everyday life, for others it is unimaginable.
Most people today have the sentiment that such pleasures are highly problematic from an environmental point of view. Most forms of travel emit huge amounts of CO2, even though advancing technologies have decreased these in recent years.
But should we forego our well-earned holidays because of these emissions?
Most people, no matter how environmentally-minded they are, would shudder at the idea of never travelling to other countries, far or wide. But there are two ways to limit the damage travelling abroad causes:
Take a climate-friendly holiday.
Take a holiday close-by and travel by bus or train. Both these modes of transportation produce significantly less CO2 than air travel. Flying less frequently also means staying at the holiday destination for longer periods instead of taking several short breaks. [2]
Compensate CO2 when travelling.
This involves calculating the amount of CO2 emissions released by your travel choice and buying compensation certificates that confirm that the same amount of CO2 has been bound elsewhere through climate protection projects. [3] This method compensates for your emissions, but we must also be clear:
Not flying at all is better than flying & offsetting. [4]
But flying without offsetting is simply the worst.
How CO2 compensation works
Climate neutralisation or CO2 compensation has now become a budding business model, so it is easy for the average person to compensate for the emissions they cause through travelling.
Compensating CO2 goes like this:
- You log on to websites of CO2 compensators.
- You indicate what kind of trip you are planning and want to neutralise.
- The calculator calculates the emissions and the price that has to be paid to neutralise these emissions.[5]
If you pay the amount quoted, you will have neutralised the carbon dioxide emissions in question, even before you go on your trip!
The idea is that in the end, the entire system will be climate-neutral or, more correctly, CO2-neutral. The money is used in climate protection projects to bind greenhouse gases.
For example, trees are planted or drained moors are rewetted because they bind CO2. There are also projects that promote the expansion of renewable energies and thus prevent emissions.
Now you can travel with a clear conscience!
Sources:
[1] Climate change: Should you fly, drive or take the train?
[2] Vacation Guide, https://wwf.panda.org/get_involved/live_green/travel/on_vacation/
[3] How to actually compensate your CO2 Emissions, https://www.wander-lust.nl/how-to-actually-compensate-your-co2/
[4] Paying for climate protection: How CO2 offsetting for flights works, https://www.dw.com/en/paying-for-climate-protection-how-co2-offsetting-for-flights-works/a-48475968
[5] Offset your flight emissions!, https://co2.myclimate.org/en/flight_calculators/new
