Depending on who you ask, global warming is either the greatest threat to the survival of the human race or a wacky scheme concocted by environmental extremists. Whether you are a true believer or a confirmed skeptic, as a business owner it’s important to recognize that a significant percentage of your customers believe that global warming or climate change is real and that it is caused by human activities.
Recent studies confirm a majority believe in global warming
According to a recent national survey conducted by Virginia Commonwealth University’s Center for Public Policy, 54 percent of respondents considered global warming to be a “major problem” and 23 percent considered it to be a “minor problem.” This result is in line with another recent study titled “American Opinions on Global Warming “conducted by Yale, Gallup and the ClearVision Institute. The study found that 71 percent of respondents in the U.S. believe that global warming is happening, with 57 percent believing it is caused mainly by human activities.
If you accept the fact that nearly three-quarters of your domestic customers and anywhere from 80 percent to 90 percent of your foreign customers believe in this, then the natural conclusion is that your company should do something about it.
One solution: establishing a voluntary carbon offset program.
How voluntary carbon offset programs work
Voluntary carbon offset programs allow consumers and businesses to compensate for the carbon dioxide emissions they produce in daily activities. These emissions are identified as the source of global warming. The average person in the U.S. generates around 27 metric tons of carbon-dioxide-equivalent (CO2e) per year. In a carbon offset program, the negative impact of these emissions is mitigated by:
1. Paying for projects that directly reduce the amount of CO2e generated
2. Paying for enhancements or modifications to planned projects that will cause them to emit less CO2e than they would have emitted without your investment
3. Buying the right to emit CO2e on an established exchange and retiring it instead of using it.
These voluntary programs are very different from compliance-related offset markets. These exist in countries where CO2e emissions are legally capped and companies and governments buy and sell the right to emit CO2e.
Go to the article: Should You Start a Carbon Offset Program?
