How much carbon does the fleet of vehicles over at KickingTires spew? For starters, about 26 tons. That's at least what the Cars.com team has decided is the right amount of Terrapass carbon offsets to buy for the fleet, and senior editor Dave Thomas said that this initial purchase will be reviewed as the cars' emissions are more accurately rated in the coming months. He told AutoblogGreen that he expects he'll need to buy more to round out the year, but for now, at least, when Cars.com reviews a huge SUV, somewhere an angel gets its wings a tree is planted.

In a blog post announcing the passes, they write that this purchase isn't trying to get on anyone's good side (although I've gotta say I approve), but "the main reason for this program is to help the environment for future generations of drivers." Oh, and the challenge to other review outlets to do the same? Clever. We don't exclusively focus on reviews here, but we do our share. Just might have to consider this for our own green selves.

[Source: Kicking Tires]

In Robbinsville, New Jersey, the Professional Fire Fighters Local 3786 has see the light. Used to fighting fires around town, the fire fighters have gone green to help fight global warming. Compact florescent light bulbs and and other energy saving measures were implemented at the firehouse, but the big red firetruck got an upgrade as well. Two of the fire fighters' front line emergency response vehicles, one ambulance and one large fire truck, now sport TerraPass stickers signifying that the carbon emissions from the vehicles will be offset by clean energy investments. The cost of the two stickers were $558, much higher than what it costs for your standard commuter vehicle (usually $60-100 a year). The Local says they are the first public safety entity to join the TerraPass program, although other fire trucks have gone green - like the San Francisco biodiesel engines. One reason for choosing the TerraPass method over, say, testing out some new hybrid firetruck, is that the team's ability to respond to an emergency call is the same as before. As the video says, "We still do everything we always did, we just do it better and more efficiently." Criticize offsets all you want, at least this is a start.

Check out the firefighters' Go Green promotional video after the jump. Thanks to Ed for the tip!

It's a minor change, but over at TerraPass, the carbon-offset-powers-that-be have added a comparison bar to the online emissions calculator. Now, when you input information to figure out how much your indulgence TerraPass CO₂ offset sticker will cost you, you'll also see a yellow bar that compares your annual emissions with the average U.S. car. The blog entry that announces this addition also asks us for our input on the change. I like it, but would be very interested in seeing a bar that represents the average TerraPass customer's vehicles. Are the users driving eco-cars or not? Your thoughts?

Related:

• CO₂ offset milestone: 100,000 TerraPasses sold
• Survey of TerraPass members finds they're not buying away their guilt

[Source: TerraBlog]

If I can't buy a hybrid or get an EV for 'round town needs, then perhaps a carbon offset sticker is the right move. That's what at least 100,000 people have decided, according to the leading consumer/driver carbon offset vendor, TerraPass. Earlier this month, TerraPass sold its 100,000th TerraPass to one Heraldo Botelho of Palo Alto, CA. It was Botelho's first TerraPass and it offset a flight he took to visit his family. Like so many other TerraPassers, he said he wanted to do something for the environment, and carbon offset was his solution.

[Source: TerraBlog]