3 ms·

I pulled that number from http://co2offsets.sustainabletravelinternational.org/ua/offsets http://co2offsets.sustainabletravelinternational.org/ua/offs... which

• usaar333 8y ago
  The actual emissions aren't too controversial (calculator I used ends up ~50% higher), but the offsetting price is very controversial. (source I linked to seems to use $30/ton, 3x United's) The problem with a voluntary offsetting regime to calculate damage prices is that the clearing price is the marginal cost of abatement for a voluntarily requested amount of CO2 to be abated. As more CO2 is requested to be abated, the marginal costs go up (less low hanging fruit like planting trees). Regardless, while you might feel good that you paid $10/ton to abate your flight, the reality is that if everyone else did this, you'd be paying a lot more than $10/ton. A fun read: http://environment.yale.edu/kotchen/pubs/explain.pdf http://environment.yale.edu/kotchen/pubs/explain.pdf (There's also controversy whether a project that produces X abatement credits really is abating that much carbon, but that's another story).
  • nrb 8y ago
    Interesting paper, thanks for sharing!