Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is causing global warming?
2. What are greenhouse gases?
3. If Carbon Dioxide is basic for life, why is it affecting human health in the planet?
4. How much Carbon Dioxide does a tree fix during its life?
5. How does a tree fix Carbon Dioxide?
6. What is the average of carbon dioxide generated by vehicles per year?
7. How many trees are planted to compensate 5.5 CO₂tons generated yearly by a vehicle?
8. How can emissions of CO₂ of miles traveled by air be compensated?

1. What is causing global warming?

    Scientists have concluded that human activities are contributing to global warming by adding large amounts of heat-trapping gases to the atmosphere. Our fossil fuel use is the main source of these gases. Every time we drive a car, use electricity from coal-fired power plants, or heat our homes with oil or natural gas, we release carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases into the air. The second most important source of greenhouse gases is deforestation, mainly in the tropics, and other land-use changes.

2. What are greenhouse gases?

Many chemical compounds found in the Earth’s atmosphere act as “greenhouse gases.” These gases allow sunlight to enter the atmosphere freely. When sunlight strikes the Earth’s surface, some of it is reflected back towards space as infrared radiation (heat). Greenhouse gases absorb this infrared radiation and trap the heat in the atmosphere. Over time, the amount of energy sent from the sun to the Earth’s surface should be about the same as the amount of energy radiated back into space, leaving the temperature of the Earth’s surface roughly constant.

3. If Carbon Dioxide is basic for life, why is it affecting human health in the planet?

 Current problem is not the presence of Carbon Dioxide, but its excess. CO2 is a greenhouse gas that causes the planet to be warmer since heat cannot leave the atmosphere.

4. How much Carbon Dioxide does a tree fix during its life?

It will all depend on the species and the environmental conditions it grows in. CO2 fixation volumes will be determined by how thick the wood is. According to the technical data provided by the Tropical Science Center, one tree in tropical zones can fix a minimum of 1 ton of CO₂ and a maximum of 2.2 tons in average during its growth and adult cycle (Data taken from a study of 70 tropical species).

For practical purposes, Climate Change Friendly Program has established an average of 1 CO₂ ton can be fixed by a tree during its growth (20 to 30 years).

5. How does a tree fix Carbon Dioxide?

 Trees and plants have the capability of capturing energy from sunlight and turn it into chemical energy. This process is called photosynthesis, which can be summarized as the transformation of CO₂ (in collaboration with sunlight and water) into oxygen and sugar. A formula that can illustrate this process is:

6. What is the average of carbon dioxide generated by vehicles per year?

In average, emissions from small and medium cars are 5.5 CO₂ tons of per year; considering a total of 20 to 25,000 kilometers driven in a year, the size and overall conditions of the vehicle

7. How many trees are planted to compensate 5.5 CO₂ tons generated yearly by a vehicle?

The Climate Change Friendly Program will plant 11 trees per car. Assuming that one tree can fix 1 ton of CO₂, we will automatically double the quantity of trees to 2 trees per CO₂ ton to have a faster process. This will allow us to expect that those trees will be able to fix the CO₂ emissions during its first 12 years of growth approximately, although the tree maturity is reached at 25 years.

If a company or individual wants an accurate calculation of how many tons of CO2 are being generated by its actions, who should be contacted?

Please contact us to provide you with a specific application form that will enable our Program to establish the total quantity of CO₂ tons and the number of trees that need to be planted accordingly.

8. How can emissions of CO₂ of miles traveled by air be compensated?

In the case of worldwide air traffic, Climate Change Friendly Program uses the following averages:

Distances and CO₂ calculations taken from www.atmosfair.de