There are a lot of different ways out there to purchase "carbon credits" to offset your carbon footprint. One of the very best, in my opinion, just launched a month ago.

Like most other organizations in this category, The Carbon Capital Fund also helps individuals calculate the amount of emissions they produce on a yearly basis and then sells them credits to offset the damage they have caused the environment. The difference with the Carbon Capital Fund, however, is that the money generated from these credits is used for only one purpose; reforesting America's National Forests with CO2-absorbing trees.

This is because the Carbon Capital Fund is actually run by the Forest Service itself. The government agency, according to a recent LA Times article, estimates that the forest under their protection absorbs "10% to 15% of the nation's carbon emissions and that planting through the new initiative will increase that amount."

That's a win-win situation in my book. Not only does your carbon credits help clean the air, but they also help reforest some of America's greatest natural resources. And, it's not all that expensive to be guilt free. A quick session on the site's Carbon Calculator revealed that I produce 7.98 metric tons of emissions per year. The cost to offset this is only $47.88. I wonder how many trees that will buy?

Filed under: Activism, Hiking, Camping, Ecotourism