What can I do to reduce my carbon footprint?

Question

Not a fan of Al Gore but that term is a good way to describe our effect on the planet.

Answer 1

Carbon Footprint is a measure of the impact human activities have on the environment in terms of the amount of green house gases produced, measured in units of carbon dioxide.

Today it is more important than ever before to minimise your footprint. Not only are the developed western countries producing more and more carbon emissions, but there is a growing problem as the population in Africa and Asia start living improved lifestyles which consume more energy.

The following is a list of simple things you can do immediately, which will start to reduce your contribution to global warming. The items in this list will cost you no money at all and will in fact save you money.

1.Sign up to a green energy supplier, who will supply electricity from renewable sources (e.g. wind and hydroelectric power) - this will reduce your carbon footprint contribution from electricity to zero
2.Turn it off when not in use (lights, television, DVD player, Hi Fi, computer etc. etc. ...)
3.Turn down the central heating slightly ( just 1 to 2 degrees C)
4.Turn down the water heating setting (just 2 degrees will make a significant saving)
5.Check the central heating timer setting - remember there is no point heating the house after you have left for work
6.Fill your dish washer and washing machine with a full load - this will save you water, electricity, and washing powder
7.Fill the kettle with only as much water as you need
8.Unplug your mobile phone as soon as it has finished charging
9.Defrost your fridge/freezer regularly
10.Do your weekly shopping in a single trip
11.Hang out the washing to dry rather than tumble drying it
12.Go for a run rather than drive to the gym

The following is a list of items that may take an initial investment, but should pay for themselves over the course of 1-4 years through savings on your energy bills.
1.Fit energy saving light bulbs
2.Install thermostatic valves on your radiators
3.Insulate your hot water tank, your loft and your walls
4.35% of heat generated in the house is lost through the walls
Installing cavity wall installation to a medium size
house should reduce your heating bills.
By installing 180mm thick loft insulation you could stop
about 25% of your heating escaping through the roof
5.Recycle your grey water
6.Replace your old fridge / freezer (if it is over 15 years old), with a new one with energy efficiency rating of "A"
7.Replace your old boiler with a new energy efficient condensing boiler

Travel less and travel more carbon footprint friendly.
1.Car share to work, or for the kids school run
2.Use the bus or a train rather than your car
3.Don't use domestic flights (e.g. from London to Edinburgh), use a train or a coach.
4.Take the ferry or channel tunnel instead of flying to France
5.See if your employer will allow you to work from home one day a week
6.Next time you replace your car - check out diesel engines. With one of these you can even make your own Biodiesel fuel
7.When on holiday - hire a bicycle to explore locally rather than a car
8.When staying in a hotel turn the lights and air-conditioning off when you leave your hotel room
9.Ask for you room towels to be washed every other day, rather than every day

As well as your primary carbon footprint, there is also a secondary footprint that you cause through your buying habits. If you buy foods out of season at the super market, then these will have either been flown or shipped in from far away - all adding to your carbon footprint.
1.Buy local wine i.e. if you live in the UK then buy from European countries rather than Australia, South Africa, and America
2.Buy local fruit and vegetables, or even try growing your own
3.Try to buy clothes and products from closer to home (look out and avoid items that are made in the distant lands such as China and India)

In addition there is your footprint at work. Do you leave your computer and monitor on when you are away from your desk? Do you leave the lights on when you leave the office? Do you print documents unnecessarily - and could you print two pages to a side and double sided?

Answer 2

I've changed my carbon footprint albeit in ways I'd never have expected. Three years ago I was green concious but still left a pretty big print with my SUV and wasteful energy practice. I washed and dried clothes after only one wear, left the A/C on when I wasn't home and I drove my SUV everywhere, even to the corner market. This all changed when my frustration with US politics and predatory comercialism reached a point where I fled the country. Now I live in, of all places, China. Now I dont drive a car, I ride an electric bike. I dont wash my clothes until they need them and I line dry them (no dryers in so China), My new wife has driven home the need for water/power conservation, not out of any green agenda, but rather from a lifetime of being too poor to afford such luxuries. The fact that we can afford it is irrelevant, it's simply not necessary. I've learned the lesson that excessive energy consumption is a cultural disese. Yes, China is the most polluted place I have ever lived. The poor air quality sometime is so bad my eyes burn and the toxic waters have me swearing off fish and avoiding untreated drinking water. Don't blame the common person however, the problem again is a societal one. Deng Xiao Peng told the masses that to be rich is glorious and then he removed any barriers to unscrupulous methods of achieveing said glory. China is rising on the fumes and exhusts from ten thousand factories all dumping unhindered. Maybe the question being asked should be directed at a bigger entitiy. Say governments and mega corporations. The common man is doing what he can.

Answer 3

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
What can I do to reduce my carbon footprint?
Not a fan of Al Gore but that term is a good way to describe our effect on the planet.

Answer 4

A plant is a plant or part of a flower used as food

Answer 5

1

Answer 6

Both are good for you, each fruit/vegetable has different vitamins. And so as more variety, as better. Vegetables have generally less sugar than fruits.

Answer 7

Hi, i was going to try to email you but i couldnt find it. Im not sure if you'll see this but i just have a question, if you could, can you email me at [e-mail]
Thank you!!

Answer 8

reuse before recycle