The Upper Austrian mineral oil wholesaler and service station operator Stiglechner introduces the first climate fuel card in Austria and thus compensates with its customers, the CO₂ caused while driving car. In times, when the CO₂concentration reaches record levels and global warming is not to be denied any more, this Austrian fuel card, for the first time available, may represent many drivers an access to climate protection.

The fact that car driving belongs to the largest polluters of harmful CO₂ emissions, is undisputed. Particularly, since there is currently no viable solution for emission-free driving for everyone. Equally, however, it is also clear that CO₂ emissions are not entirely avoidable and can, only up to a certain extent, be reduced even if unnecessary driving is omitted and people are driving fuel savingly. However, those unavoidable emissions can be avoided by the promotion of certified carbon offset projects - this is where the new Climate Fuel Card of Stiglechner GmbH is effective.

As the first station operator in Austria Stiglechner offers private customers the opportunity of CO₂-neutral driving while the emissions are "neutralized" by each liter of fuel by purchasing emission reduction credits from climate protection projects , i.e. in the same amount as caused by corresponding quantity of CO₂. "Since we immediately invest in a selected offset project for each customer who fills up with climate-fuel card, we actively contribute to improving the climate," says Elsa Dutzler-Stiglechner gladly, managing director of the family company founded back in 1923, about the start of the project. This was developed in cooperation with the climate protection consultancy ClimatePartner GmbH, which, at the first step, calculated the CO₂ footprint of Stiglechner fuels.

Every year, 2.6 tons of CO₂ per passenger

According to calculations of ClimatePartner Austria, each liter of fuel pollutes the air with nearly three kilograms of CO₂. A consumption of 50 liters of petrol or diesel, which corresponds to about once refueling, therefore, ends up as 150 kilograms in the Earth's atmosphere. Extrapolated from this, an average of 2.6 tonnes of CO₂ per year in total comes from each individual Austrian car. This number alone proves already, how important it is to save CO₂ - for example in the context of climate change projects.

"To counter the destruction of the environment, it requires undoubtedly joint efforts by the government, business and each private person . “Each initiative is a valuable addition to many measures that are currently set in terms of climate change, "says Klaus Reisinger, Managing Director of ClimatePartner Austria, about the cooperation with Stiglechner. "We know from experience that the Austrians do not like any concessions while driving, because the mobility is particularly important for them. Therefore, it makes even more sense in this respect to offer activities that promote climate protection,"Elsa Dutzler-Stiglechner adds.