Searching the web could help save the planet from global warming according to a new ‘green’ search engine initiative being launched today in New Zealand and 13 other countries.

Sydney-based ecocho says it will sponsor the growth of up to two trees for every 1000 searches users conduct on Yahoo and Google at no cost to the user.

To achieve this, the company has struck a deal with the search giants to direct advertising revenue to ecocho according to searches made through the ecocho search engine that uses Google and Yahoo! The search results are the same as on Google and Yahoo!, except the Ecocho logo is displayed above the results.

To join the scheme, users download an ecocho toolbar, selecting either Yahoo! or Google, and make ecocho their search engine.

Founder of ecocho, Tim Macdonald says that in New Zealand alone, web users conduct close to 120 million internet searches each month. “If we could capture just 1 per cent of that traffic, we would make a significant contribution towards lowering the impact of harmful greenhouse gas emissions.”

“ecocho.co.nz is a free service that doesn’t alter or slow your search results, plus users can choose between technology they know and trust, Yahoo and Google,” Macdonald says.

According to its website FAQ page, Ecocho generates funds through advertising, which is used to buy carbon offset credits, which in turn contributes cash to carbon dioxide emission offset initiatives.

Initially, Ecocho will plant trees in New South Wales, Australia, because it is close to the Ecocho headquarters and the NSW GGAS scheme was the first local government mandatory emissions scheme in the world.

Purchases through the New South Wales Government Greenhouse Gas Abatement Scheme (GGAS) will be monitored by KPMG, which will check the acquisition, registration and retirement of the carbon credits.

A similar scheme in New Zealand is currently being investigated with one option being a tie up with Landcare.

Each of the 14 nations involved will have its own national ecocho country domain, such .ca for Canada, com/de for Germany and so on, and local representatives will strike deals with carbon offset and/or forestry schemes. In New Zealand, the local representative is Creo Sustain.

“ecocho.co.nz aims to reinvest 70 per cent of the site’s revenue in forestry schemes, and as the site progresses, we’ll begin to support similar carbon-offsetting schemes in other states and countries,” Macdonald says.

To find out more or download the ecocho toolbar, visit www.ecocho.co.nz