What is the true cost
of things?
Truecost is an open sustainability index that makes environmental impacts comparable and understandable. A single number reveals the true environmental price of any product, service, or activity — calculated from per-capita planetary boundaries.
The media often focuses on the wrong thing
Truecost reveals how poorly our intuition judges environmental impacts. Every number is calculated from absolute physical values and traceable to its original source.
Where does advocacy matter most?
Bełchatów Power Station
Europe's largest coal-fired power station and single largest CO₂ point source. Burns lignite (brown coal), the dirtiest fossil fuel. Produces ~20% of Poland's electricity but is responsible for roughly 10% of Poland's total CO₂ emissions.
Permian Basin Oil & Gas Operations
The Permian Basin (Texas/New Mexico) is the world's most productive oil field and a massive source of methane leaks and CO₂ emissions from flaring, venting, and extraction. Satellite data shows methane emissions are 60% higher than EPA estimates. Fracking operations also contaminate groundwater and consume vast amounts of freshwater.
Indo-Gangetic Plain Crop Burning
Seasonal crop residue burning across northern India (Punjab, Haryana, UP) releases massive amounts of PM2.5 particulates, black carbon, and CO₂. Affects 600+ million people with toxic air. Causes an estimated 66,000 premature deaths annually in Delhi-NCR alone. The practice persists due to short turnaround between harvest seasons and lack of affordable alternatives for smallholder farmers.
Open. Transparent. Challengeable.
All Truecost data, calculation methods, and source code are open. Anyone can verify the numbers, suggest corrections, and challenge the assumptions.