|
A new US company, TripleE, has been certified to offer so-called Climate Neutral air travel, the first U.S. travel agency to do so. The concept is that a company can call itself climate neutral and exploit people's genuine concerns about climate change caused by greenhouse gas pollution. This is classic business spin, changing the perception without addressing the real source of problems. The same concept is trying to be sold to governments, and at this stage the New Zealand government is buying. Acting in our ultimately powerful role as consumers, PlaNet recommends that any `carbon credit' and/or `climate neutral' packages, be left on the shelf. The real cause of global climate change is production of CO2 and it is industry that produces most of it and it is industry that has to reduce its production. Carbon credits are a con. Working with the Climate Neutral Network, the firm, which bills itself as an environmental AAA, set up a portfolio of investment programs that offset the greenhouse gas emissions from their passengers¹ travel. Each passenger can then choose to purchase a share of that investment. TripleE¹s first offset project is the installation of natural gas boilers to replace inefficient and polluting oil-burning boilers in public schools in Portland, Ore., saving the schools money while keeping carbon out of the atmosphere. The company says it plans to offer a complete line of Climate Neutral travel services, including car rentals, accommodations, and skiing and golf vacation packages..
|
