FAQ's
What is climate change?
Climate change, also called global warming, is a change in our climate that means less stable weather, unreliable rainfall, more severe weather events and often higher temperatures. These can impact on people’s health, water supplies, farm production and natural ecosystems. Unchecked, it will impact on insurance costs as fires and floods become more severe. Acting now is our best chance to address climate change.
What causes climate change?
Greenhouse gases (GHGs) including carbon dioxide and methane are naturally present in the atmosphere. They are the world's insulation, absorbing long wave infra-red radiation emitted by the earth's surface. Without GHGs the world would be about 33°C colder, so in this sense GHGs are life-supporting. The issue is not their presence but the concentrations at which they occur. As concentrations increase, the earth’s surface temperature may rise, leading to global warming.
The effects of climate change
The likely effects of climate change include a greater frequency of extreme weather conditions: droughts; heat waves; and floods caused by rising sea levels. Carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations have risen from an estimated 280 parts per million (ppm) before the industrial revolution, to over 380 ppm today. During the last century, the earth’s surface temperature rose by about 0.6°C. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) projects further warming of about 0.2°C per decade and that it is very likely that heat waves and heavy precipitation events will continue to become more frequent.
Why should you worry about climate change?
Every time you go for a drive you're emitting CO2 into the atmosphere. This GHG is believed to be one of the main contributors to climate change. The good news is you can do something about it.
What can you do about climate change?
In an ideal world, driving wouldn't produce CO2 emissions. However, realistically, there are times when you have to drive so it's important you reduce your emissions whenever you can. There are three practical ways you can do this:
Drive less – combine trips, car-share, get on your bike or take public transport. Short trips use more fuel because the car is warming up
Drive smarter – driving smoothly and in higher gears cuts fuel use and CO2 emissions.
Vehicle upkeep – regularly check your tyres are correctly inflated (soft tyres can increase your fuel bill by up to 8%, and increasing tyre pressure by 1 or 2 psi above recommended levels can improve fuel economy and save on emissions); remove excess weight like old suitcases from the car boot; take off roof racks if you’re not using them; and have your car serviced regularly.
Windows up, air-conditioning down – air-conditioning increases fuel consumption by 5% to 10% but this is still less than driving with an open window above 60kmh.
- Reduce
Drive less – combine trips, car-share, get on your bike or take public transport. Short trips use more fuel because the car is warming up
Drive smarter – driving smoothly and in higher gears cuts fuel use and CO2 emissions.
Vehicle upkeep – regularly check your tyres are correctly inflated (soft tyres can increase your fuel bill by up to 8%, and increasing tyre pressure by 1 or 2 psi above recommended levels can improve fuel economy and save on emissions); remove excess weight like old suitcases from the car boot; take off roof racks if you’re not using them; and have your car serviced regularly.
Windows up, air-conditioning down – air-conditioning increases fuel consumption by 5% to 10% but this is still less than driving with an open window above 60kmh.
- Replace
Switch:
- Fuels: BP Ultimate® fuel cleans your vehicle’s engine as you drive to optimise engine performance. This helps to minimise emissions given the design and age of your vehicle.
- Oils: low viscosity oils deliver higher fuel efficiency.
- Tyres: some tyres are designed to increase fuel efficiency.
Change to diesel:
Diesel engines can be up to 20% more efficient than petrol (for information on the fuel efficiency of specific vehicles see: www.greenvehicleguide.gov.au
- Neutralise
What are carbon offsets?
Carbon offsetting is a mechanism by which the impact of emitting a tonne of CO2-e (carbon dioxide-equivalent GHGs) can be negated or cancelled out by either avoiding the release of a tonne elsewhere, or absorbing a tonne of CO2-e from the air that otherwise would have remained in the atmosphere. Through carbon offsets you can counterbalance your GHG emissions by supporting carbon abatement projects that reduce the equivalent amount of CO2-e. BP Global Choice works by investing your funds in Department of Climate Change accredited abatement projects, which means you are able to offset your vehicle’s GHG emissions through your support of various abatement projects.
Where do my funds go?
Your funds go towards supporting projects that reduce CO2-e emissions such as energy switching and methane destruction.The funds are used to purchase independently verified emission reductions. BP Global Choice is a non-profit program: neither the program nor BP makes any money from the purchase of emission reductions. A small portion of your funds is used to cover program audit costs (see below).
Does make a profit from the BP Global Choice® program?
No – BP Global Choice is not a profit-driven program. While we recover the external costs incurred in operating the program (including audit costs involved in achieving Greenhouse Friendly™ certification), the majority of what our customers pay goes towards the nominated offset projects. BP seeks to minimise all costs associated with BP Global Choice and makes no charge for staff time to administer the program or for marketing costs associated with promoting the program.
What has BP Global Choice® achieved so far?
The BP Global Choice program has already offset GHGs in Australia to the tune of over 2 million tonnes. This is equivalent to taking over 400,000 cars off the road for one year.
What offset projects are funded by BP Global Choice®?
BP Global Choice emission reductions are achieved by investing in independently audited projects that have been certified Greenhouse Friendly by the Department of Climate Change. Each credit purchased under the program is equivalent to one tonne of CO2-e that has already been prevented from entering the atmosphere and is not dependent upon future action. Credits required to offset your annual emissions are retired each year and declared in the annual audit for BP Global Choice.
Current projects are described at : www.bp.com.au/globalchoice
Current projects are described at : www.bp.com.au/globalchoice
