Just as indulgences allowed the rich to feel better about sinful behaviour without actually changing their ways, carbon offsets allow us to "buy complacency, political apathy and self-satisfaction", Monbiot claimed. For example, writer George Monbiot famously compared carbon offsets with the ancient Catholic church's practice of selling indulgences: absolution from sins and reduced time in purgatory in return for financial donations to the church. Efficient cooking stoves, for instance, can help poor families save money on fuel and improve their household air quality – a very real benefit in many developing countries.Įven in the case of energy-based schemes, however, many people argue that offsetting is unhelpful – or even counterproductive – in the fight against climate change. Energy-based projects such as these are designed to make quicker and more permanent savings than planting trees, and, as a bonus, to offer social benefits. Some of these concerns are valid, but in truth most of the best-known carbon offset schemes have long-since switched from tree planting to clean-energy projects – anything from distributing efficient cooking stoves through to capturing methane gas at landfill sites. Traditionally, much of the criticism of offsetting relates to the planting of trees. Is the whole concept of offsetting a scam? ![]() Over the past decade, carbon offsetting has become increasingly popular, but it has also become – for a mixture reasons – increasingly controversial. These range from books about environmental topics through to high-emission cars ( new Land Rovers include offsets for the production of the vehicle and the first 45,000 miles of use). Increasingly, many products are also available with carbon neutrality included as part of the price. ![]() ![]() At this price, a typical British family would pay around £45 to neutralise a year's worth of gas and electricity use, while a return flight from London to San Francisco would clock in at around £20 per ticket. Offset schemes vary widely in terms of the cost, though a fairly typical fee would be around £8/$12 for each tonne of CO 2 offset.
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