Carbon (D)Emissions: An FO Approach

Okay, my brain hurts; maybe you can figure this out.

How much carbon dioxide does not get released into the atmosphere when you conserve a gallon of jet fuel? (And you're not allowed to use BTUs or Joules or metric tons in your answer, since I don't think I'm the only one who's not sure exactly what those are. I also don't recommend looking to the EPA or the DOE, unless you have a scientific brain and like reading uber-technical material--and lots of it.)

Here's why I ask: There've been quite a few stories recently about various efforts to offset carbon emissions. The latest one focuses on an initiative gaining traction in the European Union that relies, in part, on the aviation industry paying more for so-called emissions permits.

It occurred to me to wonder about the environmental impact of a program we've had going for about a year now, called Fly Right, which encourages pilots to fly in ways that burn less jet fuel. (You burn less jet fuel by flying at higher altitudes, and by not exceeding normal cruise speed--as recommended by the aircraft manufacturer--among other things.)

So far (this, according to FO Assistant Director of Operations Joe Cimperman), we're using somewhere in the neighborhood of a million gallons of jet fuel per year less than we were before Fly Right.

Here's where the fun comes in: How much carbon dioxide are we not sending out into the atmosphere as a result of this program? If I could just figure out how much carbon dioxide is generated by the burning of a gallon of jet fuel, the answer would be a simple matter of multiplication.

As it stands, the only thing I can say for sure, after an hour's worth of searching for a calculation I could understand, is that there's definitely a lot of zeroes involved.


On a related note: some folks in the UK protested this week* outside of a small airport in Scotland, decrying the increasing amount of business travel being conducted by air.
*The story's in the last section of the blog post.