I finally caved in and picked up a TerraPass for my uber-unsexy thoroughly emasculating 2005 Volvo V50 wagon (rated the third most eco-friendly wagon, btw, a fact that only makes me feel only nominally better about driving a gas vehicle). I was on the fence for months about the pros and cons of carbon offset schemes (the carbon offset folks probably hate the term ’scheme’ because it is typically tinged with negative associations, but it’s really the only appropriate word with which to end that last sentence). A typical ‘PRO’ argument can be found HERE. A well-thought ‘CON’ article can be read HERE.

Dan Becker, director of Sierra Club’s global warming program sums up the dilemma: “On the one hand, there is the potential benefit of educating people through offsets. On the other hand, if people view offsets like papal indulgences that allow you to continue to pollute, then it’s probably not a good idea.” Ultimately, I’m convinced that despite Gore’s best efforts to tell 1/3 of the story, and judging from Pelosi and Boxer’s anemic proposed climate change legislation, more education is very much needed.

TerraPass does a fantastic job of providing customers with opportunities to provoke discussions regarding carbon offsets. Besides offsetting your driving habits (your fee is based on your auto model + miles driven per year), you receive:

() A TerraPass decal and registration card (the latter is meant to impress the Highway Patrol and any passenger who may be snooping in your glove box — does anyone actually use this space for gloves? I love gloves)

() A TerraPass logo sticker (the TP logo needs an overhaul but they say it looks great on tinted windows)

() A TerraPass bumper sticker (”Clean Up After Your Car”)

() The goofy cartoon featured above

Used in combination, one can be super-sanctimonious about one’s offsets (good for places like Berkeley and Marin County, bad for the rest of the world) but used sparingly (I just use the decal and, yes, I realize I’m overindulging in parenthesis in this post) a sticker promoting TerraPass is a nice way to remind fellow drivers that there are painless ways to promote sustainable energy solutions.

All in all, I’m happy with the purchase. I spent very little money to “save” 8000 pounds of C02 (the estimated amount my car and I will be emitting during the next year) and make something of a symbolic statement to anyone who may come close enough to my car to notice the decal (most likely, meter maids who are attracted to my car like honey - really the only women who pay me any attention so I’m not complaining).

In short, there is nothing to lose by offsetting your auto vehicles. It serves as a daily reminder that our vehicles are nasty beasts that we must reign in as much as possible. Given the crush and hassle of our daily lives, it’s easy to forget that even the ‘greenest’ auto are still highly destructive. I feel strongly that hybrid drivers, too, should pick up a TerraPass, to offset the 2950 pounds of C02 10,000 miles of Prius driving emits.

Decide for yourself at www.terrapass.com.

As for today’s song, well, it’s only tangentially related (it has the word ‘clean’ in the title) but I need only the slightest of excuses to post a great track by Aimee Mann: [audio:mann.mp3]

Let me know your thoughts on TerraPass and related offsetting, uh, mechanisms.

(I have to insert Todd Brilliant for search purposes as many don’t get the single D spelling when searching for this site. There. Did it.)

Tags: automotive, environment, Ruminations

This entry was posted on Saturday, March 10th, 2007 at 11:12 am and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.