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Research Outline
Prepared for Ali T. | Delivered February 23, 2021
Carbon Footprint Tracking
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Goals
To inform a project by determining the carbon footprint associated with the usage of $100 worth of gas, and the cost of remedying such footprint. An ideal response will include the methodology of footprint and offset cost determination/calculation.
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Early Findings
Carbon Footprint Data
According to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), 8,887 grams of Co2 is produced from a single gallon of gas (
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gasoline
). This equates to 0.00887 metric tonnes of Co2 per gallon of gas.
More simply, 1 gallon of gas produces
about 8,700 grams of Co2
.
According to
data from Global Petrol Prices
, the average price of gas in the US over the last four months is $2.956 per gallon.
According to data from CoolEffect, an NGO that works to build carbon offset projects, offsetting a ton of Co2 costs
between $3 and $13
.
Calculations
$100 worth of gas will be equal to ($100 / $2.956 per gallon) = 33.829 gallons.
Since 1 gallon of gas produces 8700 grams of Co2, 33.829 gallons will produce 33.829 * 8,700 grams = 294,312.3 grams of Co2, or about 0.294 tonnes of Co2.
The cost of offsetting 0.294 tonnes of Co2 ranges from $(0.294 * 3) to $(0.294 * 13) =$0.882 to $3.822.
Summary
The carbon footprint of $100 worth of gas is about 0.294 tonnes.
The cost of offsetting the carbon footprint of $100 worth of gas (0.294 tonnes) ranges from under $1 to about $4.
The research team leveraged credible and publicly available data and made reasonable mathematical approximations to arrive at the answer above.
The geographical focus for this research was the US. If a different focus is required, please indicate this in any further correspondence.
To provide more value to the goals of this research, please select the most appropriate of the below research suggestions.
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