Does this Carbon Offset example seem right to you?

Question

Here is the example i read about that is current used by one UK airline.

Passenger buys a ticket to Miami
Carbon content of flight amounts to £15 ( 30 USD )
Company called "CarbonCare" then use this money to buy a manual water pump for use in India.

I beleived carbon offsetting was designed to put in place an activity where the carbon dioxide produced by this passenger would be removed from the atmosphere.

At best, i suppose you could argue that this pump allowed the owner to grow crops that would grow and remove the carbon. But its bit of a tenuois link in my view, and you could also argue the opposite that buying the pump helps promote machine dependency and further industrialise the planet.

This is not a question about if there is global warming or not, nor is it a question about whether we should buy products for other countries who might need our help.

its a confused question about the carbon offsetting system.

Enlighten me please

Answer 1

I have to agree with EnviroDude - carbon offsets are a poorly-regulated and overall shady business. The analogy to indulgences is almost exact. What you're really paying for is peace of mind; there's no guarantee that "offsetting" will reduce your carbon footprint, and certainly none that it will reduce it in the exact amount that you produced. Very little research goes into producing these programs, and why should it? It's free money.

I'm afraid, in the end, you can't have your cake and eat it, too. The way to reduce carbon footprints is to actually reduce your consumption, period. Nothing else suffices. The likes of Gore, who are pushing carbon offsetting programs, are feeding the American mentality of gluttony which is the precise problem, here. Self-control is what is required.

Answer 2

A manual water pump would not be mechanical, would it? Sometimes people in third world countries don't even have DRINKABLE water (without parasites,etc), so wells and water pumps can give them safe water to drink...aside from the ideas of planting crops and watering them with the water. They can water crops with unsafe water sources, but wells and water pumps would give them safe water to DRINK. ...if I am reading your question right.

No, if they still went on the flight, then there would still be carbon dioxide that was probably not offset. But it would be a nice thing to do even if you are not flying anywhere (if you can afford to do so).

Some charities are building water wells with water that is pumped out of the ground by children running on spokes in circles and riding on the seats of the spokes. So that way you have a children's playground and water pumped out of the well at the same time....

Answer 3

we don't. yet carbon offsets are used to plant trees -- which help sequester greenhouse gasses, so a minimum of the offsets are greater useful than no longer something. And that's no longer a lot power use it is the concern -- once you're producing your man or woman with photograph voltaic panels and wind, it would not actual count how a lot you employ, you at the instant are not affecting something negatively by skill of doing so. that's the burning of fossil fuels it is the dilemma. trees soak up the gasses generated by skill of doing so.... greater trees = greater sequestration. that's no longer a "replace" for burning much less fossil fuels, it purely offsets a small quantity of their use. buying the offsets is greater useful than doing no longer something -- utilising fewer fossil fuels is much greater useful -- doing the two is greater useful yet. Use fewer fossil fuels if available and plant greater trees -- if all of us did that we would be greater useful off. i'm keen to guess that if we arise with a greater useful thank you to gas planes -- the "conservationist" you're panning will use them. And if the day ever comes whilst our Presidents and previous Presidents and Vice Presidents do no longer prefer a secure practices contingent everywhere they bypass, i'm having a guess they are going to no longer prefer the great autos to any extent further besides. right here is my question: "whilst are the 'conservatives' going to give up making fool statements approximately 'the liberals' and understand we at the instant are not some amorphous mass with a single techniques?" asserting "the liberals" is not greater sensible than lumping all "conservatives" in with the tea party human beings who're out yelling and protesting, yet once you ask them particular questions approximately what they are protesting, they have particularly no thought.....

Answer 4

Selling carbon offsets is the biggest sham scam since the Catholic church came up with the idea of you paying them money to pray your loved ones out of purgatory.


Does purchasing the offset eliminate the carbon emission? NO!

Answer 5

Yea I been looking into it too here are some sources I've looked at. Shaky deal at best.

Answer 6

Yes it does other wise nothing would survive.