climate neutral in:spa flights   As you are no doubt aware, air travel releases gases that contribute to global warming, such as carbon dioxide. In fact, your flight will be the largest environmental impact of your holiday. Why not offset it by paying a small, but very important supplement on the cost of your holiday? For in:spa trips it's less than £5 per person to cover your return flight. We’ve teamed up with an environmental organisation, Climate Care, to help you to repair the damage your flight does to the climate. Climate Care funds sustainable energy and forest restoration projects that reduce carbon dioxide on your behalf, by the same amount as your share of the plane emits. Examples include a project in India to help schools move on to renewable cooking fuel and a project in Uganda that is restoring the rainforest in Kibale National Park. The cost of “offsetting your emissions” is just £3.80 for Marrakech, £4.05 for Agadir, £2.41 for Ibiza, £2.74 for Seville and £2.06 for Tuscany. (Figures are from London airports. For costs from other airports, please see emissions calculator) If you pay for your holiday by Switch or other Debit Card, in:spa will pay the carbon offset cost of your flights for you at our expense! If you would like to make the flight on your in:spa holiday climate neutral, please let us know. Or pay for your holiday by Switch or other Debit Card and we will cover the carbon offset costs of your flights at our expense (flights to and from UK only). If you would like to make the flight on your in:spa holiday climate neutral, please let us know. For more information – www.climatecare.org FAQs: Air travel and climate change When I fly, am I contributing to climate change? Yes. Aircraft operations generate greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide (CO2), and other effects in the atmosphere linked to water vapour, ozone generation, methane reduction and cirrus cloud formation. There is now international scientific consensus that rising greenhouse gas emissions are leading to global warming. What’s the overall effect of air travel on the climate? The overall effect of air travel on the climate is greater than the CO2 that comes from burning aviation fuel, because the emissions are released high in the atmosphere. The calculations used by Climate Care take account of this– for more information see the report on calculating emissions from air travel on Climate Care’s website. Am I offsetting emissions for the whole plane? No. You are just paying for your seat. Emissions per person are estimated by dividing the total fuel used on a journey by the number of seats on the plane. I pay a departure tax, so why should I pay Climate Care? Air Passenger Duty is a passenger tax levied by the Government on all departures from the UK and generates almost £1 billion annually. However, the money isn't spent directly on mitigating the greenhouse gas emissions from your flight, whereas your payment to Climate Care is. FAQs: Offsetting What is offsetting? When you buy a carbon offset, your money is used to reduce carbon dioxide emissions on your behalf. The emissions are reduced through projects that prevent the release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, or absorb it through reforestation. The reduction made is the same amount as your flight releases. How do Climate Care’s projects ‘offset’ the CO2 emitted? Climate Care's projects avoid, reduce or absorb greenhouse gases through: • Renewable Energy – energy creating no extra CO2 emissions • Energy Efficiency - using less energy to reduce CO2 emissions • Forest Restoration – absorbing and storing CO2 What is sustainable energy? Most of Climate Care’s projects (80%) are in sustainable energy. These are projects that reduce or avoid emissions being released into the atmosphere. The types of projects include renewable energy and energy efficient technologies. Nevertheless, approximately 20% of emissions each year are from deforestation and forest fires, so Climate Care also makes 20% of their CO2 offsets in forest restoration. FAQs: Climate Care Who is Climate Care? Climate Care Trust sells CO2 reductions, and funds projects around the world to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to tackle climate change. The reductions made balance our customers’ emissions, making customers' activities climate neutral. Is Climate Care Trust a charity? No. The founders of Climate Care felt that it is not the job of a charity to clean up others pollution. It is a service rather than a good cause. The Trust is a company limited by guarantee, which means it has no shareholders. It’s corporate aim is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Would the projects have happened anyway? Climate Care is very careful only to fund projects that would not have happened without our support. In technical speak, they are “additional”. How can I be sure that Climate Care’s projects are making the CO2 reductions that they claim? Climate Care is scrutinised by an Environmental Steering Committee, which includes eminent environmentalists and NGOs, including WWF and Forum for the Future. To ensure that the projects achieve the CO2 emissions that they claim, the Committee requires them to meet three criteria for each project, these are: • that a third party report be obtained • that the CO2 reductions be monitored on an ongoing basis • that any shortfall is made up through other projects What about projects in the UK? If we did projects in the UK, we would find that the carbon savings we made would be counted towards the government’s Kyoto target – a commitment it has made to reduce emissions through an international treaty. By doing projects in countries without Kyoto targets, we can be sure that we are making extra carbon savings to what has already been promised around the world. Where does Climate Care get its data for the CO2 emissions calculator? Climate Care commissioned a report from the Environmental Change Institute at Oxford University on the emissions from individuals’ air travel and the figures come from this report.         © 2008 in:spaHoliday   T:+44(0)845 458 0723