Carbon footprint - carbon offsetting
British Airways was the first airline to introduce a voluntary passenger carbon offsetting scheme.
The money raised funds emission reduction projects such as hydro-electric power plants and wind farms. A number of these projects also have health and social benefits, so by making offset contributions you can have a positive effect on communities as well as neutralising emissions from flying.
Find out where your carbon offsetting money goes.
Carbon offsetting projectsMore about carbon offsetting
Click on the topics below to view more information.
How does carbon offsetting work?
The money you pay to offset the emissions from your flying is used to buy and cancel carbon credits that will have been registered and verified through the United Nations Kyoto Protocol. These carbon credits balance the effect of your emissions by funding projects that reduce the amount of greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere.
The United Nations process validates and audits projects to ensure they produce authentic benefits and are genuinely 'additional' activities that would not be otherwise undertaken.
How is the carbon offset contribution calculated?
There are two key elements within the calculation of the carbon offset for your flights:
- volume of carbon produced
- cost of carbon credits per tonne
The amount of CO2 produced from your flight is calculated using carbon dioxide factors published by the UK Government. These factors tell us how much CO2 is produced for each kilometre travelled per passenger.
This amount reduces the further you travel, as flying longer distances is more fuel efficient.
Example:
London Heathrow to Barcelona
Distance = 1146km
Kg CO2 per passenger km = 0.13
No of passengers = 2
Total CO2 = 0.298 Tonnes of CO2
Where does your money go?
Your money goes towards supporting projects in developing countries and typically focus on providing new sources of renewable energy and in promoting energy-efficiency schemes.
In addition to balancing your CO2, the projects we have chosen must also bring social and economic benefits to the communities in which they are based and often bring health benefits from improvements to local air quality.
Read about the British Airways carbon offsetting projects
Cost of Certified Emission Reduction
The cost of the Certified Emission Reductions and hence the price of the offset is based on the market price, which may change from time-to-time due to supply and demand and also currency exchange rates.
Morgan Stanley, who are specialists in sourcing emission reductions, will use offset contributions to fund a portfolio of projects.
Example:
London Heathrow to Barcelona
Distance = 1146km
Kg CO2 per passenger km = 0.13
No of passengers = 2
Total CO2 = 0.298 tonnes of CO2
Cost of the carbon offset at a carbon price of £15/tonne = £15 x 0.298 = £4.47