Led by its philosophy that private businesses should understand their role in climate change, PEARL JAM has committed to paying $200 per ton of CO2 for its Gigaton Tour, which toured dozens of cities in North America and Europe earlier this year. The average for the carbon offset market globally falls at $1 to $15 per ton.
During its international tours, the band moves tons of equipment and people across the globe. In an aim to mitigate its touring carbon footprint, the company has invested over $1 million for CO2 offsetting since 2003.
The musicians hope that the public awareness they spread will lead other businesses and individuals to consider their impact on climate change and invest in CO2-reducing technologies. In 2020, PEARL JAM released the music video for their song “Retrograde,” which shows a future vision of the earth ravaged by climate disasters and features climate activist Greta Thunberg.
“We are not going to move to a carbon-neutral economy without a massive shift in priorities and behavior,” said the band’s rhythm guitarist Stone Gossard. “We need huge amounts of capital to innovate, invest, and problem solve to create brand new systems, and we need those investments to be smart and persistent. By committing to this aggressive pricing, we hope to amplify our efforts tenfold, highlight the most compelling avenues for carbon sequestration, mitigation, and reduction, and hopefully gather many partners who share our urgency to make the enormous efforts and innovations required to move our world to a carbon balanced and more conscious economy.”
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Big rock tours will continue to bring negative climate effects until sustainable trucks and aviation become commonplace, which is why PEARL JAM sees investing in different carbon-reduction strategies as the most promising road to change.
The band will take a layered approach in using the funds coming from the “Gigaton” tour. Its portfolio includes sustainable fuels, rainforest protection, and photovoltaic technology.
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