Offering carbon-neutral transports with map&guide

13 May 2009, 1:24pm

Karlsruhe/Germany, May 13, 2009. Offering carbon neutral transports may sound paradoxical. But the software suite map&guide professional 2009 helps logistics companies to take action on their own environmental impact. The carbon offsetting feature and climate certificates now allow even smaller organisations to benefit from "green transports" and gain competitive advantages. PTV will be presenting the new software functions for the first time at transport logistic in Munich (hall B2, stand 403/504). The official release date is expected to be around the middle of May 2009. All functions will then be available as an automatic update for version 2009.

The route planning software map&guide professional is the first standard software which allows logistics providers to issue reliable quotes for carbon-neutral transport. Of course, money won't eliminate CO2 concentrations once emitted into the atmosphere. However, it is possible to save or "offset" CO2 emissions. Organisations that support these carbon offsetting projects can make their transport services carbon-neutral  essentially by paying a certain sum to compensate for the pollution.

A transport run becomes carbon-neutral if carbon emissions are offset by funding a properly certified project that aims at reducing future CO2 emissions or saving the same amount of greenhouse gas. For every ton of CO2 emitted in Europe, another ton is saved elsewhere, for example, by building a hydropower station instead of a coal-fired power plant in Asia. In the global climate system, it does not matter where CO2 is emitted or saved. Until now, only multinational companies have been able to offer eco-friendly transports. Smaller companies have not had access to appropriate projects and the calculation has been too complex.

How can smaller transport companies afford to provide these services? The answer to this is simple: with the software the logistics provider can calculate a transport order with and without the environmental extra fee. The customer can then select between carbon-neutral or standard delivery.

Avoiding - cutting - offsetting

Carbon offsetting is not a modern version of the buying and selling of indulgences. It is a measure of last resort. It would be better to completely eliminate CO2 emissions. However, this is rather difficult in the logistics sector. Nevertheless, emissions can be avoided by reducing the number of transport runs, for example. Another option is to cut carbon emissions, and finally to pay a certain sum to compensate for the pollution.

By optimising transport runs, dispatchers can eliminate unprofitable trips, make better use of individual vehicle capacity and vastly improve the efficiency of the overall fleet. Best of all, every kilometre saved not only cuts costs and fuel consumption, but it also reduces carbon emissions. Another weapon in the cost-cutting arsenal is driver education. Training courses can sensitise drivers to the benefits and techniques of efficient driving and lead to fuel savings.

Carbon-neutral transports with map&guide professional

The emissions calculator integrated into map&guide enables users to calculate CO2 emissions for each route. The emissions calculation is based on the standard reference issued by the German Federal Environmental Agency. Emissions calculated during the planning process can then directly be offset. Now, logistics providers only have to start up map&guide in order to reliably issue quotes for "green" transports.

The offset payment for a route from Berlin to Munich amounts to approx. EUR 6,60 for a truck with a total weight of 12 tons and Euro class 4 producing 277 kg of CO2 emissions. map&guide calculates the extra fee for each route with a single click.

Reliable business partners

PTV partners with established companies who provide access to certified climate-protection projects. They include the Hamburg branch of Sweden's Tricorona AB and the myClimate foundation in Switzerland. Both organisations see to it that offset fees are invested in climate protection projects that conform to Kyoto Protocol guidelines. After paying the fee for carbon-neutral transport of a shipment, freight operators receive an e-mail or letter containing the official offset certificate for the trip planned in map&guide.

Wise spending with certified projects

Offset payments only go toward supporting projects that meet the international WWF guidelines (World Wide Fund for Nature) and the Guide on Voluntary Compensation for Greenhouse Gases of the German Federal Environment Agency. The WWF Gold Standard is the highest quality standard for carbon offsetting projects. It ensures that projects meet high quality criteria, such as the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) of the United Nations (UNFCCC).

Project sponsors have to prove that they would not carry out the projects without the extra funding. A wind farm that was already scheduled to be built in Asia would not qualify as a CDM project and would thus not generate tradable emission credits. If, however, plans to build a coal-fired power plant were scrapped in favour of a hydropower station funded with offset payments, the annual CO2 savings could be marketed as emission credits in industrialised countries. The actual trading is done in "CERs" (Certified Emission Reductions), which represent roughly one ton of CO2 saved.

The emission reductions need to be measurable, verifiable and permanent. Compliance will be verified by independent third parties. Additionally, information on the climate protection projects must be available to the public. Project participants need to be registered with the United Nations.

Sustainability is another important criterion: the project should provide its host country with non-climate-related benefits, such as improvements in the infrastructure, employment or water supply.

map&guide professional information

Geo: International