Canadian Geographic: Kwok Wong

ALONG WITH forking out for a meal, pillows and blankets, Air Canada passengers can now opt to pay an extra fee to feel a little less guilty about the carbon dioxide released during their flight.

At a maximum of $51 for a long-haul journey and as little as $1.60 for a regional flight, the voluntary surcharge is invested in green initiatives, such as tree planting, which is intended to decrease carbon footprints.

“There’s a bit of a debate on it,” says Air Canada spokesman Peter Fitzpatrick, “but from our perspective, it is something you can do that is immediately effective in terms of reducing harmful emissions.”

Fitzpatrick says the company started its program in May because of growing criticism of the airline industry’s impact on the atmosphere, and because both passengers and the airline wanted it.

Air Canada customers booking flights online are directed to zerofootprint, a non-profit organization that helps businesses and individuals reduce their carbon footprint, and the money they pledge is now being put into a reforestation project in Maple Ridge, B.C.

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