The Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs has confirmed that its carbon balancing scheme is proving a success following its December arrival
Words: Paul Guinness
The Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs (FBHVC) has confirmed that the carbon balancing scheme it unveiled last December is already proving a success, with 553,564 miles being carbon balanced by the UK’s classic car owners since launch.
Although the carbon footprint of the historic vehicle movement is extremely small, with the entire community accounting for less than 0.25 per cent of total mileage on UK roads, the offer of carbon balancing has been well received.
The FBHVC’s scheme offers individuals, clubs and events organisers a quick and convenient way to carbon balance their emissions via new areas of woodland in the UK. The woodland is planted using native species to best contribute to the local ecosystem, as well as bringing other benefits of increased biodiversity and the creation of recreational spaces.
The scheme employs a carbon calculator, which uses annual mileage and miles-per-gallon data to calculate the tonnes of CO2 emitted by a vehicle each year. This figure is then used to purchase the equivalent amount of Carbon Units.
When an individual carbon balances their expected annual mileage, they receive a welcome pack through the post explaining how their contribution is to be used and what their impact on carbon balancing has been, plus a vehicle sticker to show its contribution to the scheme.
David Whale, FBHVC chairman, comments: “Historic vehicles have a place on tomorrow’s roads and it’s vital that we continue to enjoy our transport heritage unhindered. This scheme allows us to carbon balance the very tiny and insignificant amount of mileage we undertake, whilst demonstrating that we wish to contribute to a net carbon neutral future in a positive way.”
Anyone interested in carbon balancing their classic vehicle usage can find out more at trees.fbhvc.co.uk
