05 Jul 2007 - Beijing,
China – With just 400 days to go until the
2008 Beijing Olympics, WWF is encouraging
athletes competing in the games to "win
gold" by offsetting their carbon emissions
through dependable climate change reduction
projects.
Airplaines are responsible for 3.5% per
cent of global warming from all human activities,
releasing more than 600 million tonnes of
CO2.
On average, each athlete flying to Beijing
will be responsible for releasing about
4 tonnes of CO2. Some 10,000 athletes are
expected to compete in the Olympic Games,
and together with the thousands of spectators
coming from around the world, the event
will inject hundreds of thousands of tonnes
of carbon emissions into the atmosphere.
With the click of a mouse
WWF is working with several offset organizations
that will allow athletes, supporters, the
media, and anyone else planning to travel
to the Olympic Games to easily calculate
their relevant CO2 emissions through a carbon
calculator, and give ideas of where to donate
to a number of recommended offset projects.
With a few clicks of the computer mouse,
athletes can offset their emissions by supporting
wind turbine projects in New Zealand, Alaska,
Madagascar and Turkey; solar projects in
the US, Eritrea and Costa Rica; or a biomass
project in India. Many of the projects are
Gold Standard-approved.
“It’s as simple as clicking a button on
the web to add the environmental costs of
your flight," said Dermot O’Gorman,
head of the WWF China.
"An average investment of around US$100
means a double win, as an immediate boost
to some worthwhile projects and as a push
to the clean energy market.”
WWF recommends the following carbon emission
offset calculators: Climate Friendly; MyClimate;
Atmosfair; and NativeEnergy.
Tan Rui, Communications Officer
WWF China
