Carbon offsetting has a mixed reputation around the world. Some view it as a wonderful thing - providing an easy way for everyone to lower their carbon footprints and push us all towards a greener future. Others however regard it at best as a counterproductive idea which draws attention away from cutting emissions and at worst a cynical method by which big businesses can pollute all they like whists still being able to tick their little 'green checkbox'. In reality it is a combination of the two - it is a genuine way to invest in renewable energies which provide great benefit to the world and help us down the road to sustainability but it is a system that can definitely be abused. The focus should still remain on cutting overall emissions - if you're producing carbon dioxide then you're still contributing to global warming, no matter what you are contributing to carbon offset schemes.
 
However the schemes that exist, if used properly, can be very very beneficial. They range from investment in renewable technologies such as wind and hydroelectric power to sustainably managed forestry to carbon capture systems to systems for the safe destruction of industrial pollutants. All of these are vital for the future sustainability of our energy needs and the survival of the planet which the arguable exception of carbon capture systems
Carbon capture relies simply on generating power with fossil fuels as normal but capturing the emissions and storing them in underground geological formations, trapping them under impermeable rocks or injecting directly into the ocean at very deep levels. Underground storage is, by it's very nature, unsustainable and unreliable and ocean storage contributes to the acidification of the oceans which is incredibly harmful to ocean life and will fairly quickly leak back into the atmosphere anyway.
 
If you really want to help the environment, first look at ways to cut down your own emissions - insulate your home, turn your heating down a degree or two, use your car less etc. Then if you want to offset the emissions you do generate look at the carbon offset companies out there and the projects they run and pick the ones with the best eco-credentials. I am a big believer in the eco-tariffs available from most energy companies - for a small subsidy the best ones guarantee that for every unit of energy you use a unit will be generated from a sustainable source. Since it's the energy companies that do the bulk of the polluting, directly helping push them away from fossil fuels and towards renewable power generation is one of the best ways to help our planet.

Ok, ok, I know many people will see this as tactless and missing the big picture when people are losing their jobs and belts are tightening by more than a couple of notches all over the world. My purpose is not to make light of that in any way, simply to show an environmental 'silver lining' and underline how any environmental benefits to the credit crunch may continue after the financial world stabilises itself.
 
Fuel
The costs of electricity and gas have leapt up in recent years which has actually also done its part in helping the environment as it has given us the incentive to be less wasteful. Many of us have started turning off our central heating when we are out and down by a degree or two when we are in, using energy saving light bulbs, washing our clothes at 30 degrees rather than 40, getting loft insulation, double glazing and maybe even a new, much more efficient boiler. Well the crunch is only serving to improve this further - household bills are always the first thing people focus on trying to cut down when times are tight and most of these savings can be done without changing your lifestyle one bit. Admittedly double glazing and a new boiler are not cheap (although they can save you literally hundreds of pounds a year on bills) but the other changes cost little or nothing and you will see the saving as soon as your next bill comes in.
 
Transport
After its astronomical peak last year the cost of fuel has come down at a similar speed in recent months, however more and more people are still wondering if it's economically viable to keep their cars. With the average service these days being £500 - £1000 and insurance something similar, public transport and pedal bikes are becoming more and more appealing to many. Also let's not forget the money tied up in the value of your car - flogging your car when times get tough and investing in a bike can keep your finances afloat, drop your carbon footprint and improve your health in a single blow.
 
Holidays
Let's face it, one of the first excesses that is likely to go for many people during the crunch is the fancy foreign holiday. But this should be seen as an opportunity both to explore what the UK has to offer for your annual leave and to cut out the carbon emissions attached to your international flights. Try the Tranquility devon and Cornwall, the mountains of Snowdonia, the beauty of the Scottish Borders or the rugged widerness of the Scottish Highlands. Also remember the thousands of miles of coastline we have and the right to roam act which has opened up massive amounts of it that were previously off limits.

OK I know you get this sort of energy saving rundown in a lot of places but it's so simple to save energy in the home that I thought it was worth giving some top tips to save you money and give the environment a helping hand.
 
Use energy saving lightbulbs - These use on average about a fifth of the energy of a normal lightbulb, which (the mathematicians among you will already have figured this out) will save you four fifths on your lighting bill.
 
Insulate your home - Most heat is lost from a home though the roof (remember hearing in high school science lessons that hot air rises?) so loft insulation can save you a packet on heating bills. Whatever it costs to get the insulation in you'll usually get back through saving on heating within a couple of years. Double glazing is also fantastic at keeping the heat in.
 
Get your boiler serviced - A gas boiler has a lot in common with a car engine. If it's not serviced regularly its efficiency will drop and, along with releasing excess soot and/or unburnt gas into the atmosphere you'll find it starts pushing your energy bills up.
 
Get a bike - Ride to work, get some exercise, leave the car at home a few times a week. Although Britain definitely 'Could do better' we have a tremendous amount of cycle lanes, off-road cycle paths and handy shortcuts that are great for dodging the rush hour traffic under pedal power. Believe me, your body will thank you for it too - you'll find yourself more alert, with more energy and of course more justification for that cream cake at lunch time...
 
Only boil the water you need - How many people do you know who insist on boiling a full kettle every time they want to make a single brew. They stand by the kettle for 15 minutes four times a day waiting for it to boil and then wonder where the day went. Boil enough for a single cup and it'll take two minutes and maybe you won't end up working late every Friday.
 
Turn your washing machine down to 30 degrees - All these new fancy biological, stain-removing, fabric-softening, crime-fighting laundry detergents will usually get you clothes just as clean at 30 degrees as they will at 40 or above. And while I'm on the subject there are some fantastic eco-friendly detergents out there that are a whole lot kinder to the environment when they wash down your drain - why don't you give them a try?
 
Recycle - The world isn't disposable and we need to stop treating it like it is. Rather than letting all you waste end up in a landfill, take your bottles, cans, plastics and paper with you when you head out to the shops and stop by the nearest recycling point. Pretty much every supermarket in the country has good recycling facilities so it's really very little inconvenience at all.
 
Turn the heating down a degree or two - You won't notice the difference in temperature but you really will notice the difference in your heating bills. Why not put on a jumper rather than heating your house to the temperature of Sub-Saharan Africa so that you can spend the day in your pants?
 
Turn off the lights when you leave a room - This one's a no-brainer. Ditto televisions, radios, computers, heaters...
 
Buy local - The fuel involved in shipping your peas from Peru and your carrots from Kuala Lumpur on a daily basis is quite frankly ridiculous. The UK has great farmers producing some of the worlds best produce and we should be appreciating them more. Yeah OK they're not going to be able to give you strawberries in the middle of winter but sticking local can give you back an appreciation of seasonal foods and as such a more varied and interesting diet. Also the UK has much stricter laws on pesticides than many nations we import from so do think about what nature of chemicals your delicious tropical fruit may have been soaked in,

There has been a lot of talk about green energy tariffs lately and how (for a small increase to your monthly bill) you can help the planet by going low or zero carbon in your home. Now many people dismiss these as gimmicks or come out with the same old tired line that it's up to the government to produce clean energy and why should we pay more for it?
Well here's a newsflash - clean energy is growing fast and getting a great deal of investment from many sectors including the government but if we really want to help the planet we have to do our bit too. So I thought what better way to encourage this than to do a rundown of the top green energy tariffs offered in the UK.

British Gas

Zero Carbon gives you a genuine zero carbon footprint for your home at least for an average increase of £7.50 on your monthly bill (assuming you are a dual fuel customer). The endless calls trying to get a word of sense out of British Gas' customer support team however will cause an average increase of £10.42 on your monthly phone bill.
Future Energy is basically giving British Gas an extra £3 a month (on average) that they promise to invest in renewable energies which they will then supply back to the national grid.

E.On

E.On are focusing on an overall 'green attitude' with great investment in offshore wind farms and an extensive portfolio outlining their future plans for green energy production.
They have one business and one domestic 100% green tariff - EasyGreen and Go Green respectively. Both match every unit you use with a unit from a renewable source.

Scottish Power

Green Energy Fund is quite simple - as they say on the site "Each year, no matter how much or how little energy you use, a fixed amount of £10.50 (inc. VAT) is automatically donated to the Green Energy Trust on your behalf". So it's exactly the same as you setting up an 88p a month direct debit to trust yourself. Well as they say - something is better than nothing!
Green Energy H..2..O is a plan that matches every unit you use with one generated at one of Scottish Power's own hydro-electric plants. To encourage you on to this plan they also offer you an (average) discount of £16.80 a year if you use them for dual fuel (of course some fairly substantial Terms and Conditions apply). This is the first tariff I've seen where it could actually be cheaper to go green.
 

NPower

Juice is a tariff that matches your energy consumption unit for unit (although based on an estimate of your usage) with energy from renewable sources. They also claim it will cost you nothing extra on top of your monthly bills and there is even an £80 discount if you switch to it for gas and electricity (£20 discount if you just switch one). I'm very impressed by this.
 

Green Energy UK

Green Energy UK only have two tariffs - Deep Green and Pale Green. Deep Green being 100% renewable energy and Pale Green being a combination of renewable and 'low impact' combined heat and power generators. They don't give any indication of their pricing relative to other providers but have great eco-credentials.
 

Good Energy

Good Energy claim to be the UK's only 100% renewable energy provider. they don't have different tariffs but claim their weekly premium is "equivalent to 2 pints of beer or an average bottle of plonk" - so about a fiver a week then?
 

Ecotricity

New Energy uses power from Ecotricity's own wind turbines topped up with normal power from the National Grid. Currently the percentage of their own wind power is 30% and rising by 10% a year.
New Energy Plus uses power from Ecotricity's own wind turbines as above topped up with renewable energy from other sources making it a 100% renewable tariff. They claim the premium to be in the region of £20 a year for the average household.
 

The Verdict

Well it's hard to tell what the catches are for any of these plans without signing up yourself but certainly on paper I'd say that Scottish Power's Green Energy H..2..O and NPower's Juice are looking like the best bet. I very much admire these new smaller energy providers with fantastic green credentials but economies of scale mean often that the bigger companies are generally able to provide the same level service for a better price.