Emissions associated with transportation and lodging were estimated using the following assumptions:
- GHG emissions for automobile travel assumed 20.3 mpg (combined car and SUV/light trucks)
- 19.4 lbs CO2e per gallon
- 1,841 lbs CO2e from airplane emissions for flight from Chicago to Burlington, including radiative forcing index
- GHG emissions for lodging assumed 63 lbs per night
- GHG emissions per participant for the Biomass Symposium were calculated as a weighted average using the following assumptions:
Transportation:
- 30 percent of participants will be driving several hours to attend (e.g. Portland, ME to Burlington VT, 210 mi. one way) in a single occupant vehicle
- 10 percent of participants will be driving several hours to attend (e.g. Portland, ME to Burlington VT, 210 mi. one way) in carpool (2 people per car)
- 40 percent participants will be coming from the area and driving an average of 40 miles each way in a single occupant vehicle
- 20 percent of participants we be flying (e.g. Chicago to BTV)
Lodging:
- 60 percent come from out of the area and stay 2 nights in a hotel
- 40 percent live locally and will not use hotel lodging
Using these assumptions, we calculated that the average emissions associated with travel and lodging would be 615 lbs. CO2e or 0.28 MtCO2e. At $25 per ton (well above commodity pricing to reflect the significant co-benefits that these forest carbon projects bring), that rounds out to $7.00 per person.
We realize that emmissions associated with air travel significantly affect the climate impact. For simplicity, we offered just one, "one-size-fits-all" option calculated as a weighted average of all expected participants. In the future, we may offer local and non-local options.
Please contact us with any comments or questions:
- Laury Saligman, Conservaion Collaboratives, laury@conservationcollaboratives.com
- Cecilia Danks, University of Vermont, cdanks@uvm.edu
- Charles, Jerchner, AgRefresh, ckerchner@agrefresh.org
Check back soon for
a summary of preliminary findings from this survey.
To go back to Consumer Preference Survey page, please click here.