Environmental Leader

Virgin America says its passengers can now choose to offset their flight at the time of booking through the company’s ticket purchase confirmation Web page.

The company says it will soon offer passengers the chance to offset the carbon footprint of their travel during their flight via the airline’s seatback inflight entertainment system. Virgin has partnered with Carbonfund.org on the project.

Last year, Virgin Atlantic unveiled a plan to sell offsets from the aisle in front of fellow passengers in an effort to shame them into buying them.

Inland Empire Utilities Agency Biodigester, a methane capture and elimination project, has been selected by the company as one of its offset projects. The company says the project reduces more than 8,000 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent from the atmosphere every year, while also protecting the quality of the California’s groundwater.

Another project that the company has selected is IdleAire, a truck stop electrification project that reduces tailpipe emissions from trucks by connecting truck cabins with electricity at rest stops and eliminating the need to keep engines running for power.

Delta was the first U.S. airline to offer its customers a carbon offset program. Other airlines, including Cathay Pacific, JetBlue, Virgin Blue, and SAS have similar programs.

British Airways took a lot of flak over its carbon offset program.