There has been a big push in recent years towards the wider adoption of green cars in order to reduce the damage that petrol and diesel emissions cause to the environment. Many people are now realising the benefits of having a more environmentally-friendly car now too, which is why the sales of hybrid and electric cars have been soaring over the past few years.
Fleet managers are under particular pressure to reduce their carbon footprint since they are responsible for a lot more vehicles than a regular motorist. There are a few ways that fleet managers can reduce their carbon footprint. One very obvious way is to invest in green vehicles i.e. hybrid or electric cars. It’s not always practical for fleet managers to invest in 100% electric vehicles due to their reduced range over greater distances. However a lot of fleet managers are now using a mixture of hybrids, plug-in hybrids and electric cars in order to reduce their CO2 emissions.
How do carbon offsetting schemes work?
Other than investing in green vehicle technologies, there is also the option of participating in a carbon offsetting scheme. Carbon offsetting schemes work by issuing credits for the amount of CO2 based on the fuel that is bought. These credits are then used for projects that help the environment, such as the planting of new trees. Carbon offsetting schemes are ideal for businesses that have already taken steps to reduce their CO2 emissions but have run out of obvious ways to do so further.
A growing number of businesses are now embracing carbon offsetting schemes since they provide a way to offset emissions without the need for further investment in new technology or to take steps that would be harmful to the business overall. In most schemes, the fleet manager simply provides fuel reports to the organisation running the scheme and they calculate how much carbon needs to be offset as a result.
As low/zero emission vehicles rise in popularity, the emissions from fleets will continue to fall. As a result the amount of carbon that needs to be offset will also reduce. However it’s still going to be a number of years before zero emission fleets are the norm and until that point, carbon offsetting schemes are an excellent way for fleet owners to conduct their business in a way that’s environmentally-friendly and responsible to the community.