Why I Offset

by Jeff Mertz, TWP Carbon Offset Partner

TWP’s tree nursery in El Salvador is managed by local people, like Jorge Ochoa (pictured), and plants tens of thousands of trees each year for their carbon offset program.

Right after my daughter was born in 2004, I started thinking of ways to balance the carbon effects of my behavior as an offering to her future.  Many of the things that I first considered in 2004 have now become part of our ecologically-friendly household: recycling, composting, gardening, trying to use the car only when necessary, walking and cycling whenever possible, purchasing carbon offsets, and installing a 4 kW solar array on our roof.

I found Trees, Water & People (TWP) when I did an internet search for agencies that operate carbon offsetting programs.  I liked what I read about TWP’s programs, including installing solar air heaters and providing green job training for Native American communities and doing reforestation and clean cookstove projects in Latin America.  In 2008, I started planting trees with the help of TWP.  To date, 1,850 trees have been planted on my behalf and I have offset 185 tons of carbon.

While many people aspire to become “carbon neutral,” I want to take the idea a step further and become “carbon negative.”  I like to think that the activities described above have effectively cancelled my carbon footprint but I do not believe that I should stop there.  TWP’s tree planning program provides a simple means of furthering that intention.

For more information about how you can offset your environmental impact please visit TWP’s website.