Best Buy Selling Renewable Energy Credits

Best Buy is encouraging users to “Green Your Phone” by selling clean energy credits.

The retailer is teaming with Renewable Choice Energy to Green Your Phone.

Constantly charging your cell? Best Buy and Renewable Choice Energy want to provide an environmentally friendly alternative. It’s not pixie dust; they’re selling wind power.

According to Renewable Choice Energy, the electricity needed to manufacture and use two typical mobile phones for two years is 500 kilowatt hours (kWh). The product, also known as Green Your Phone, is actually “certified renewable energy credits.” Wait… what’s the product again?

While the prospect of buying wind power may seem to be on the same list of bridges you can buy, well—that’s subjective. You aren’t actually using the power. However, by purchasing “the product,” you are basically paying forward for your carbon footprint, and supporting renewable energy projects.

Your purchase gets you two “Offset with Wind Power” decals: one for you and one for a friend. It basically buys you bragging rights, as well as the right to wave your finger at those without a fancy decal.

I don’t have anything against renewable energy, but the fact that you have to put your faith into a building that’s sucking up more energy than you, me and an entire city block in exchange for a sticker makes me suspicious. Don’t even get me started on the store’s lighting. Maybe it is pixie dust after all.

Interested shoppers can start greening phones today for $10 a pop. The credits started selling yesterday at 1,000 Best Buy stores nationwide.