I will begin with the premise that we all would do what we can to prevent the devastating effects of global warming, that is, if it seems reasonable. But what is reasonable?
For many people anything that requires a significant change in behavior is not reasonable. The Guardian, in an article by Damian Carrington, recently reported it had surveyed hundreds of the world’s top scientists. They asked them what are the most effective actions individuals can take. It may come as no surprise that some 76% said that the most effective individual action is voting for candidates who pledge to fight for strong climate policies.
The second most important action is flying less. It is a fact that flying is the single most polluting act many engage in. A lot of you have to fly for work and business. Most of us elect to fly for nonessential travel because it is fast, convenient, and relatively inexpensive.
Distance is a factor. If you are traveling short distances, driving has a lower carbon footprint. For distances longer than 1,000 miles your carbon footprint may be less if you fly, unless, when you drive you take passengers and have a car with good fuel economy.
How bad is flying? You may be shocked to find that one round trip flight across the country would generate 20% of the greenhouse gases your car emits all year. According to statistics compiled by the World Bank, each of us in the U.S. generate about 16.4 metric tons of carbon dioxide a year. One flight will produce about 1/18th of your total annual emissions.
The best solution is to fly less. Many people may not have that option so they buy offsets. An offset is a payment you make to take planet-warming carbon dioxide out the atmosphere in exchange, at least theoretically, for the greenhouse gases your flight puts into the atmosphere. But just how effective are carbon offsets?
Most offsets are not regulated. Many do not provide additional benefits that would not have occurred without the money from the offsets. To work they have to fund reductions that wouldn’t have happened otherwise. Many only provide short-term benefits.
I have to fly to Minneapolis this summer. I have a non-stop flight. I can offset any guilt I may have by paying a few dollars to an offset program. It is a cheap penance, but does it work? The answer is maybe. Many people see these offsets as important tools to limit environmental damage in the short run.
Bruce M. Usher is a professor at the Columbia Business School of Business. He says they will have to become more effective and transparent but that does not mean offsets work today.
“If you wish to use them because it aligns with your values,” he says, “sure, you should buy carbon credits. But don’t be under the illusion that, for every credit you buy, it’s absolutely 100% reducing emissions by an equal amount.”
One problem with offsets is that they reinforce the notion that we can meaningfully fight climate change while living our lives the way we always have. In other words, they give us a false cover for avoiding reducing emissions.
Barbara Haya, the director of the Berkeley Carbon Trading Project, says that the problem with offsets is you are trading a known amount of emissions for an unknown amount of reductions. And she adds, “there is also the whole trading approach of companies being able to buy their way out of their responsibility to reduce their own emissions.”
While many travel offset programs include laudable projects like tree planting, renewable energy and the prevention of tree-cutting, most experts agree that at present these voluntary carbon markets are flawed.
“Carbon credits are generally invisible; it is hard for buyers to discern quality,” says Kaya Axelson of the Oxford Net-Zero project. They lack regulation or consumer protection.
There is a larger problem that goes well beyond whether you should fly or drive. According to Injy Johnstone the author of the Oxford Offsetting Principles, human activity emits 100 million tons of carbon a day and offsetting removes 5.5% of that.
“Offsetting,” she says, “can play a role in achieving net zero. We urgently need climate mitigation, and offsetting strategies is one key lever we have.”
On May 28, 2024, the Biden administration issued unbinding guidelines for carbon offsets that stress that offsets should represent actual, additional and long-term reductions. But the wisest choice for discretionary travel is to avoid flying when you can.
Published on June 3, 2024, in the Albuquerque Journal.
© Judith Polich. All Rights Reserved. May be republished with author’s written consent and proper attribution.