Global Warming

Its all very well to go chugging off across continents by truck, car or motercycle, but its difficult nowadays to ignore the consequences of burning so much fossil fuel.  Unless you have a solar powered or methane burning vehicle, you will be contributing to mankinds greatest challenge.  The threat of climate change due to Global Warming.  Burning fossil fuels releases carbon dioxide into the air, which is what its all about.  I'm going to assume you are reasonably briefed on that sort of thing anyway.  If you're not, this will give you an explanation.

First, the bad news.  Let's see just how much carbon is released into the atmosphere by your vehicle.  Let's say a 5.3 litre diesel engined truck.  A Bedford for example.  First of all, we need to know the amount of fuel burned on our journey.  India and back, with little detours for sight seeing.....say.....30,000 kms. (we did 29.000+) and the truck does about 20 miles per gallon.  If you use a carbon calculator you will find that this will mean you have released about 20 tons of carbon into the atmosphere.  This is referred to as your 'carbon footprint'.

You bad person!! What big carbon feet you've got!  (Buy an environmentally friendly vehicle!  We bought one of these!)

Do not despair!!  No need for sackcloth and ashes!  Put away the whip!  We have a solution.....We have the technology!!

Its called carbon compensating.  And it's all about trees.  If you know about this, then OK.  If not, this will give you an explanation.

There are many arguments about this topic, some people saying that growing trees is an unreliable method of removing carbon from the atmosphere, that if they rot or burn, it is all for nothing.  BUT until someone comes up with a better method, humble citizens such as you and I that want to do something other than argue about the case in question, will settle for planting some trees!

Here's what happens.

So, our  journey to India by truck released about twenty tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.  To avoid adding to the overall effect of greenhouse gasses heating our planet, we have to remove this carbon gas from the air, reducing our carbon footprint.

How can this be acheived?

It's simple really.  Trees use carbon dioxide as a food source to grow, breathing it in with their leaves.  As a bonus for humans, they release oxygen as a waste product!   As  they grow, they capture the carbon in their wood.  The bigger the tree, the more carbon dioxide it has consumed.  This is called 'carbon fixing'  by the boffins.

But how do we get twenty tons of carbon 'fixed'?

Well, if your garden isn't big enough to grow about eighty trees, you'll have to find some where that is.   To facilitate just this sort of thing, there are some new organisations that have been set up to help out!  They are planting trees on behalf of those of us who want to do something about climate change.  They are planting new forests.  Usually located in areas that have suffered from deforestation, (another climate issue) in places like Equatorial Africa, India, and Bangladesh.  As well as fixing carbon, these new forests also provide employment for local people, and help to reduce rainwater run off.  Another spin off is the replacement of habitat for forest creatures that have lost their living!

So how do I get them to grow some trees for me?

Again, very simple.  Get in touch with them and send them some money.  They will use it to plant the correct number of trees to 'compensate' for your carbon footprint.  Carbon calculators are available on nearly all the web sites of these organisations and they will tell you how much to send.  Shop around!

Who are these organisations?

If you go to our links page, (see column on the left) you'll find a few of them.  You can 'Google' them by using the phrase, <carbon offsetting>
 

We haven't saved the planet.  I suppose that we shouldn't have used a fossil fuel burning vehicle for the journey, but its a long way by bike!

But there again, if Adam had told Eve to stick her apple where the sun doesn't shine, we wouldn't be in this situation anyway!  Bon Voyage!
 

Live across the Pond?  Here's the US government site on climate change.