For many years now, the public has been aware of the considerable damage that increased greenhouse gas emissions, such as carbon dioxide, are doing to the environment. This rise has come from businesses, households and increased travel by road or air, which in many cases is unavoidable for some.
Yet, the impact on the planet is growing increasingly more severe, with problems including global temperature rises, increased flooding and adverse effects on complete ecosystems.
As a result, many businesses and individuals are trying their best to reduce their carbon footprint and some have turned to carbon offsetting in a bid to counter the problem.
Carbon balancing involves supporting projects that remove CO2 from the atmosphere or prevent the release of emissions, such as with tree planting and forest management schemes in Malawi, which are organised by the charity Temwa.
This offsetting is done in the hope that a business or individual can balance out their carbon footprint, by giving something back.
Carbon Balancing with Temwa
Since 2003, Temwa has planted over 1.5 million trees, supported forest management and helped families adopt sustainable farming which enables the capture of more carbon in the soil, making it more productive and nutrient-rich.
Forests contain large volumes of carbon, yet many have been rapidly destroyed to create firewood and make way for further farmland, with communities unaware that deforestation can negatively affect the soil and release the stored carbon into the atmosphere.
The tree planting schemes enable recapture of CO2, in addition to helping communities better provide for themselves. And by supporting such schemes, businesses are able to transparently balance their carbon emissions.
Poorer communities, such as those in remote parts of Malawi, are helped to plant trees, learn new forestry techniques and ensure the long-term security of their woodland, through changes to by-laws to protect forests, while providing for their families at the same time.
Get involved!
With Temwa Carbon Balance, you and your business can:
- Calculate your emissions using the online carbon calculator
- Discover ways to reduce your emissions
- Balance carbon emissions through monthly or single payments
For example – for as little as £12.50 you can balance a ton of CO2 by planting and protecting 10 trees and helping families to maintain forests and farms sustainably. This increases food security and climate resilience while also capturing more CO2, so why not get involved today?
Balance My Carbon Calculator
Take a look at this easy to use online calculator to find out what you can do to balance your carbon. Fill in the length of your flights in hours, and/or your annual driving mileage. This will give you an idea of how much it will take to offset the carbon emissions that you, or your business, is creating.
Recently our Managing Director, Darren Lallo, visited Malawi with the Temwa charity to assist in one of the carbon balancing schemes and was moved by how much of a positive impact the schemes were having on the local community, in addition to helping the environment at the same time.
At Armco Direct, we are extremely proud to support the Temwa Carbon Balance – could you or your business be next?
