What does offset mean?

If you produce 1 ton of CO₂ each year then offseting it means to do something that will either consume 1 ton of CO₂ from the atmonsphere or prevent another 1 ton of CO₂ be emitted.

For example:

• You could consume 1 ton of CO₂ by planting 4 trees and allowing them to grow for 1 year.
• You could prevent 1 ton of CO₂ by generating 15 MWh of electricity with solar panels, wind / water turbines. This is roughly the amount of electricity consumed by a 4 person household.

Can I pay a service to offset my carbon emissions?

The easiest way to do this is by donating to organisations which plant trees around the world. Typically it costs $1 for one tree to be planted.

There are many start-up companies which claim to offset your emissions via a monthly subscription or by paying a little extra on your ecommerce transactions.

Before you invest in one of these services you should carefully research where your money is going. Many claim to invest your money into renewable technologies but this may not mean your carbon emissions are being offset.

How accurate is this emissions calculator?

The emissions calculator provides a rough estimate of your carbon emissions.

The calculator averages documented carbon emission rates over a year based on your answers to provide a monthly emission level.

This means that the calculator depends not only on the accuracy of the documented carbon emission rates, but also on the accuracy of the information you have provided.

It is important to remember that the purpose of the emission calculator is to help you roughly identify how much carbon you are emitting and how many trees must be planted annually to offset it.