Terrapass is a new website that let’s you track and buy offsets for your CO2 footprint. According to their website, TerraPass has reduced over 250 million pounds of CO2 pollution by funding clean energy projects. They partnered with great companies like Expedia or Ford motors.
This summer I am planning to go back to Asia and spend my vacation in India. My flight from NYC to Delhi will take about 14 hrs, 14,596 miles and causes about 5,692 lbs CO2 or 291 gallons of fuel. My Terrapass for the flight would be $36.95.
I really like the Terrapass website (especially the tracking and tips how to reduce CO2), but am I and the majority of people ready to spend $37 for one flight? I believe not, even that I am obsessed with recycling, saving energy, driving a small car …probably due to my German heritage (note: Germans charge $0,7 desposit on cans/PET bottles and are obsessed with recycling, waste management, solar power, wind energy…).
Terrapass would make more sense if I could use the $37 to invest in “green” or carbon reducing technology and at a later point get the money (with no interest) back. Kind of like Kiva.org, which invests my money in third world countries and let’s me re-invest or take out the money after a certain amount of years.
Having said that I still think Terrapass is an amazing idea and ideas like this make a positive change happen.
