Volkswagen Forest in the US

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — It's a novel idea for an automaker — and one that is bound to make environmentalists like Al Gore happy. Volkswagen has announced it will plant an actual forest to help atone for the carbon footprint of its vehicles. Volkswagen of America said it is introducing a new environmentally friendly program to offset the "carbon footprint" of people who buy new VWs from September 1 through January 2, 2008. The program is run in partnership with Carbonfund.org, a nonprofit organization that supports renewable energy, energy efficiency and reforestation projects to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. VW said it plans to reforest land in the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley in Northern Louisiana, a place it describes as "a wetland ecosystem that had been largely converted to farmland." The company said it will achieve a total carbon reduction estimated at more than 372,000 tons of carbon dioxide from the planting of more than a quarter-million native trees in what it's calling the Volkswagen Forest. This "is the first time a car company and its community of owners have mobilized on this scale to offset carbon emissions and reduce their climate footprint," said Eric Carlson, Carbonfund.org executive director. VW also said it will partner with Carbonfund.org to offset carbon emissions at a vehicle test-drive program at the Teva Mountain Games and for an upcoming Clean Diesel marketing tour.