Travelers who are environmentally conscious will soon be able to buy carbon offsets at San Francisco airport kiosks.
The San Francisco Chronicle is reporting that the experimental program is scheduled to start in the spring. It would make San Francisco the first airport in the nation — and possibly the world — to offer fliers the opportunity to purchase carbon offsets.
The San Francisco Airport Commission is still working out the details with 3Degrees, a San Francisco firm that sells renewable-energy and carbon-reduction investments. It will be a $163,000 investment though Steve McDougal, executive vice president for 3Degrees, can’t discuss specifics, such as the cost to purchase the offset and what programs would benefit.
Travelers would go to a kiosk, punch in the destination and the computer would calculate the carbon footprint and cost of an investment to offset the damage. The passenger would then swipe a credit card and get a receipt. The carbon offsets, however, aren’t tax deductible.
A portion of each offset would go to the San Francisco Carbon Fund, according to Mayor Gavin Newsom’s spokesman Nathan Ballard. The fund supports local projects such as “energy-efficiency programs and solar panel installations for low-income housing, as well as efforts to convert waste oils into biodiesel fuels.”
The San Francisco Airport Commission will provide the kiosks and 3Degrees will supply the software and the certified carbon offsets being sold and will operate the program. 30 percent of each purchase will go to 3Degrees and the rest will go to carbon-reduction projects.
McDougal said that it’s impossible to tell how many passengers will contribute, but “if we just have a lot of people stop and read the information and think about it, that’s something we’ve accomplished.”
