Carbon Offsets 

Carbon offsets are certificates representing the reduction of one metric ton of carbon dioxide. Many companies and individuals choose to purchase carbon offsets to reduce their carbon footprint. The companies selling offsets typically achieve them through the production of renewable energy, energy efficiency programs, or forestry projects. The certificates represent the social and environmental attributes of the carbon reduction, and the money from the sale of the carbon offsets typically funds further carbon-reducing projects.

Carbon offsets are similar to but fundamentally different from renewable energy certificates. RECs, also known as green tags, are a tradable commodity in many jurisdictions that guarantees 1 MW of energy was produced from a renewable resource such as wind or solar. Producers of a renewable energy resource are awarded a certificate for every 1MW of power produced. Like carbon offsets, the certificates can be sold on the open market to consumers who want to offset their carbon footprint. Much of the revenue from the sale of renewable energy certificates is used to fund new renewable energy projects or subsidize the price of existing projects. In states with Renewable Portfolio Standards, energy companies can use certificates to meet the mandated renewable energy production standard.

Alaska has no renewable energy portfolio standard; therefore all renewable energy certificates in the state are traded on a voluntary basis. The Bonneville Environmental Foundation (BEF) offers RECs that include renewable energy produced in Alaska.  Businesses and individuals can contact Hannah at REAP to discuss the purchase of RECs and carbon offsets containing the social and environmental attributes from small village wind projects in rural Alaska.

BEF also coordinates the Tour Green Carbon Offset campaign, a carbon offset program specifically designed to offset carbon dioxide emitted by tourism activities in Alaska.  Each BEF Tour Green Carbon Offset represents 100 kilowatt-hours of wind power entering the energy grid and creates a savings of 150 pounds of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere.  BEF Tour Green Offsets fund the development of clean, renewable, wind energy sources.  Contact Hannah at REAP for more information on BEF Tour Green Carbon Offsets, or ask your tour company if they are Tour Green participants.

Sources:
Bonneville Environmental Foundation
Cordova Electric Cooperative
Environmental Protection Agency