Volkswagen to Offset Owner's Carbon Footprint through Partnership with Carbonfund.Org

INDUSTRY NEWS
Volkswagen to Offset Owner's Carbon Footprint through Partnership with Carbonfund.OrgAUBURN HILLS, MI (Aug. 31, 2007) - Volkswagen of America Inc. announced today that it has partnered with Carbonfund.org to offset one year of carbon emission from each new Volkswagen vehicle sold in the United States from Sept. 1, 2007 through Jan. 2, 2008.  Working with Carbonfund.org, a non-profit organization dedicated to finding solutions to climate change, Volkswagen plans to reforest land in the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley (LMAV) in Northern Louisiana, a wetland ecosystem that has been largely converted to farmland. The total carbon reduction is estimated at more than 372,000 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) from the planting of more than 250,000 native trees in the Volkswagen Forest. Not only does this program help reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, but it also restores native trees to habitat, provides food for local wildlife, reclaims barren pastureland and increases water security. Reforestation is a form of carbon sequestration, which captures and removes CO2 from the atmosphere - trees use CO2 and store it in the trees' mass and in the soil. The climate, soils and growing conditions in the LMAV result in carbon absorption rates that are among the highest of any region in the United States: 450 tons of CO2 per acre, compared to 170 tons per acre in comparable projects worldwide.  "We developed this partnership to help bring our customers to the forefront of environmental initiatives," says Adrian Hallmark, executive vice president, Volkswagen of America. "Vehicles are an important and necessary part of our society, but there are actions we can all take to help ensure a cleaner environment for future generations. We hope that Volkswagen's investment will serve as a catalyst to involve our owners and create awareness beyond our defined contribution."(Source: Volkswagen of America Inc.)