uShip Customers Now Offsetting CO2 Emissions From Their Own Deliveries

LONDON, April 22 /PRNewswire/ -- When given an option to make a fiscally-friendly or an Earth-friendly decision, a recent study (http://bit.ly/dut3Fh) shows that most people side with saving their green rather than "going green."  But must saving money and the planet be mutually exclusive?  

(Logo:  http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20100202/USHIPLOGO)

Fortunately, they do not when it comes to delivery and transport, one of the greatest contributors to global warming (http://bit.ly/bRZEzD).

Since 2004, uShip (http://www.uship.com), the global online transport marketplace, has made logistics and removal more affordable and efficient by matching customers' deliveries with the extra space in transporters' vans.  This has resulted in fewer empty lorries on the road and more affordable delivery costs for hundreds of thousands of people.  

But that's only half of the equation.  Through uShip's partnership with TerraPass (http://www.terrapass.com/partners/uship/), the award-winning carbon offset provider, both shipping customers and transporters can help neutralize the negative environmental impact of their transport activities by purchasing TerraPass offset credits.   Learn more on http://www.uship.com/greenshipping

Here are three ways customers can "go green" on uShip while having their items delivered quickly, safely and efficiently:

1. Fill extra space in lorries already making the trip.  By using uShip and filling extra space in lorries, excess delivery vehicles are kept off the road. An estimated 300,000 metric tonnes of CO2 have been saved on uShip, and transporters have offset 210,000,000 miles, enough to circle the earth 8,448 times.
2. Select a TerraPass certified transporter on uShip.  Nearly 5,000 independent drivers and fleet operators have stepped up to be TerraPass Certified Green Transporters on uShip. Each transporter purchases TerraPass offsets based on uShip activity and receives a TerraPass logo on their profile page.  
3. Purchase TerraPass Eco-Offset Credits.  Eco-offset credits can be purchased at the time of check-out on uShip, based on the weight and distance of their shipment.  For example, the offset credit for a Toyota Camry (1,670kg) being transported 500 miles would be just 85p.

How do carbon offsets actually work? A carbon offset is a certificate representing the reduction of one metric tonne (1,670kg) of carbon dioxide emissions, the principal cause of global warming. When uShip transporters and customers purchase carbon offsets through TerraPass that money goes to projects that reduce carbon dioxide emissions, in effect making the air clean again.  

About uShip

uShip helps relieve the stress and high cost of moving hard-to-ship items, such as cars, furniture, pianos, boats, haulage, heavy equipment, pets and more.  As the first and largest online transport marketplace, uShip connects people and businesses with feedback-rated transporters.  Carriers place competitive bids to win business, often filling extra space in their trucks and saving customers an average of 50 percent.  During its first five years, the uShip marketplace attracted GBP 80 million in business transactions, one million listings and 170,000 service providers.  Launched in 2004, uShip operates globally with localized functionality in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, European Union and Australia.

SOURCE uShip