WE’VE GONE CARBON AND PLASTIC NEUTRAL (WELL POSITIVE ACTUALLY)!

Looking after our health and the health of the planet are non-negotiables for us here at Bike n’ Blend! Going carbon and plastic positive means we have offset more (20% in our case) than what we have produced/consumed in carbon emissions and plastic use over the last 10 and we will continue to do so each year going forward. We have always reduced our impact on the planet as much as possible (not using plastic straws and lids, paying for commercial composting for our compostable cups and food scraps, and using green power via Powershop, to name a few) and this is the next great step that we hope will become the norm ASAP! Not only did we offset this year’s carbon and plastic usage but we offset our impact for the last 10 years we have been operating (plus 20% more so we always remain positive). Why? Because this is so important and thankfully so easy and affordable. We encourage everyone to make climate-healthy choices that go beyond being carbon neutral. See our blog post here to find out how we did it and links to how you can to (as an individual or business). Here’s to a cleaner and brighter future!

So, what exactly is Carbon Neutral?

“Carbon neutrality” means that you have reduced your climate impact to net zero. As it is almost impossible to avoid the creation of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions entirely, Bike n’ Blend needed to balance these unavoidable emissions through the purchase of carbon offsets. What is a carbon offset, you may ask? To “offset” our carbon usage means that we pay for the planting of diverse native vegetation, which will in turn sequester the amount of CO2 we put out into the atmosphere. While carbon sequestration is not a silver bullet and the best solution is to avoid generating GHG’s in the first place, it presents a medium term solution to help our society balance our output until alternatives can be developed. Our offsets were purchased through Carbon Neutral and will be invested back into a program that will begin the plantation process located in Western Australia.

How do you become Carbon Positive?

The process of becoming Carbon Positive involved looking into all areas of our business to measure our footprint, including how staff travel to work, packaging material use, waste, printing & office paper, water use & disposal, and fuel & electricity indirect emissions. Based on this research the total tonnes of GHG emissions were calculated and then compensated for by purchasing carbon offsets so that net emissions of Bike n’ Blend activities are drawing down. To find out more or to make your home or business (or both!) carbon neutral see: https://carbonneutral.com.au/ or https://calculator.carbonpositiveaustralia.org.au/

So, what exactly is Plastic Positive?

We calculated the amount of plastic our business is responsible for (over the last 10 years plus 20% more to be positive), and based on this amount we paid a fee for recovering hundreds of kilograms of ocean plastic and helping thousands of under-served people via Plastic Bank

What does this mean for Bike n’ Blend customers?

To put it simply, supporting Carbon and Plastic Positive businesses means that you are helping reduce your own personal environmental footprint. Perth based charity Carbon Positive, has been assisting with ways we can better educate and engage households to understand and act on their carbon emissions. They recently launched their very own carbon calculator! If you are curious to work out your own household carbon footprint, click HERE.