Offset your carbon emissions!
The president of Iceland, Mr. Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, formally launched the website of Kolviður – the Iceland Carbon Fund, by offsetting the first private vehicle in Iceland, but on the website individuals can calculate their transportation-related carbon emissions and pay for the number of trees planted required to offset the emission. Mr. Grímsson commented that for non-governmental organisations, like those founding the Iceland Carbon Fund, to go in for actions specifically aimed at reducing carbon emissions and combating climate change was unique.
On this occasion Guðfinna S. Bjarnadóttir, chairman of the board of the Iceland Carbon Fund, and Sveinn Runólfsson, director of the Soil Conservation Service of Iceland, also signed a contract regarding land for the first prospective Iceland Carbon Fund Forest, at Geitasandur in the south of Iceland.
The sponsors of the Iceland Carbon Fund are the government of Iceland, Reykjavík Energy and Kaupthing Bank. The government of Iceland has now carbon offset all the vehicles of the Government Offices of Iceland and as of January 1, 2008, all ministries and government agencies will be required to offset job-related flights. Reykjavík Energy has been a leader in research on carbon sequestration in Iceland, as well as prolific in planting in the areas under their supervision. Kaupthing Bank is the first company in Iceland to offset all job-related flights, as well as all employee cars.
The chairmen of the boards of the Icelandic Forestry Association and the Icelandic Environment Association expressed their pleasure with the launch of the website of the Iceland Carbon Fund and thanked everyone who contributed to the preparation of the project. The manager of the Iceland Carbon Fund is Soffia Waag Árnadóttir.
As a rule of thumb the amount required to offset a car for one year is roughly equal to the price of one refill of fuel – one tank a year!
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