America’s First Personal Carbon Credit Goes to Pennsylvania Family
Could energy efficiency be profitable? Well not profitable per se, but it can pay to seal up your home or install solar panels. A family in Pennsylvania is on record as the first to receive a personal carbon credit for saving one metric ton of carbon dioxide emissions.
The Wilson family installed a $58,000 solar electric system on their house last year and made other energy efficiency upgrades. This year, they sent their pre-solar and post-solar electric bills to MyEmissionsExchange.com, a website that verifies and sells carbon credits. The carbon retailer figured from those bills that the Wilson’s had saved at least one metric ton of carbon emissions. So, they put a credit on the market that was bought by Molten Metal Equipment Innovations, Inc., bringing in a whopping $21.50. 20 percent of that stays with MyEmissionsExchange, leaving the Wilsons with $17.20.
OK, so personal carbon credits are certainly no profit deal, but for the Wilsons, going solar and increasing home efficiency was never about selling carbon credits. With energy savings, tax incentives and other incentive programs, the family expects to have their system paid off within six or seven years. After that, it’s free energy for life.
What carbon credits the family can get are a bonus. A bonus that could get bigger in the coming years if Congress passes a decent cap-and-trade or carbon tax bill to curb greenhouse gas emissions. In California, a panel is considering paying residents for energy reductions that could provide a family of four with up to $1,000 annually. But the Wilsons, along with most Americans, do not live in California, and like most families, won’t be using carbon credits as much of a financial incentive. At least not yet. Perhaps the Wilsons’ reception of the first personal carbon credit is a harbinger of things to come, but what better impetus could there be than free energy for life? I suppose getting paid for your free energy would be a tad better.
Story and Photo Via USA Today
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Posted on January 18th in Solar News by Dan.
January 18th, 2010 at 1:00 pm
Buying a carbon offset for $21.50 isn’t really an incentive to find alternative, cleaner production methods… I hope that didn’t buy them another few weeks of dumping sludge into rivers…
“Located in Middlefield, Ohio, Molten Metal Equipment Innovations is a world leader in molten metal pumps, degassing equipment and scrap submergence melting systems. MMEI offers a complete range of transfer, circulation and gas injection pumps. Our pumps provide the highest flow rates and longest service life for maximum production. Complete degassing systems are available, including lightweight portable units, automatic ladle degassing stations and in-line units. MMEI specializes in the ability to customize our products to meet each customer’s unique application. MMEI has a complete team of engineers and sales staff to offer a variety of services and unparalleled support to our customers.”
January 18th, 2010 at 3:06 pm
I think it’s a bit sad that preventing 1 metric ton of carbon emissions is only worth $21.50! Still, I imagine plenty of people will recognize that preventing emissions has its own innate (and very significant) value.