Carbon Emissions

Carbon Footprint

The greenhouse gases produced as a result of our activities as humans is called our carbon footprint. Our carbon footprint is measured in units of carbon dioxide.

Ways that we directly contribute to carbon emissions (Primary Carbon footprint)

With our modern lives there are actually many ways we contribute to carbon emissions.

1. Driving Cars and Flying
This alone accounts for almost a quarter of our carbon emissions. This includes flying for business, driving for shopping, recreation, errands and other personal reasons. It doesn’t include the daily commute to and from work; this is prominent enough to be in a category of its own.

2. Water Heating
This accounts for 18% of our carbon emissions. This includes the heating of water for showers, dishwashers, bathrooms, kitchens and washing machines.

3. Electronic Appliances
This is almost as much of a culprit for carbon emissions as water heating. Hair driers, radios, amps, televisions, computers, you name it. Anything that plugs into the wall is an offender. The tragedy of it all is that electronic appliances are still a cause of carbon emissions even when they’re switched off and in standby mode.

4. Home Heating, Cooling and Driving to Work
People don’t like to be too warm or cold so to keep our homes at comfortable temperatures we contributing 11% of our carbon emissions.

Traffic jams in peak hour traffic, a common scene around the world at least twice a day accounts for another 11% of our carbon emissions. Add this to our number 1 offender and in total, driving cars and flying accounts for a whopping 36% of our total carbon emissions.

5. Refrigeration/Freezing
Now here’s something we have working hard for us all year round to keep our food and liquids chilled. Without really giving it much thought, our refrigerators and freezers account for 9% of our carbon emissions.

The remaining ways that we directly contribute to carbon emissions is via:

• Lighting
• Cooking

What are the ways that we indirectly contribute to carbon emissions (Secondary carbon footprint)?

We have just covered the ways that we release carbon emissions into the atmosphere directly, this can be quite easy to measure and is in a way quite tangible to us e.g. when you drive your car and you hear the engine, you can hear, smell and see that gases are being released.

There are the carbon emissions which we contribute to which aren’t so obvious. As consumers, we buy use and discard a great deal. All that we use has gone through an often lengthy process before it reaches us and these processes will more then often result in carbon emissions. Machines in factories, chemicals for foods, shipping, packaging, the list is never ending and then of course there is the end result of all these things ending up in landfill. Even though the shoes we are wearing aren’t releasing carbon dioxide as we walk, a great deal of carbon emissions have occurred as a result of their production.

How we can reduce our carbon footprint/emissions

Now that we know how we contribute to carbon emissions, we can work on ways to reducing them

Primary Carbon Footprint reduction

1. There are times where you really don’t need to drive. E.g. if you are going to the shops just down the road. Invest in a bicycle; it will do wonders for your health too. If you are going on a trip with friends or family, carpool.

2. Have shorter showers. Use cold water for washing machines.

3. Turn off all electrical appliances at the wall when you are not using them (particularly when you are away for an extended period).

4. Only cool or heat the part of the household you are in. Wear appropriate clothing for the temperature and keep the cooling or heating at moderate levels.

5. The idea with fridges/freezers is too keep them as cool as you can so they have to work less. Keep them in darker places away from heat sources including the oven. Don’t leave fridge/freezer doors open, they have to use more energy to cool back down. Don’t keep them too cold; fridges should be around 4 degrees and freezers -18 to -15 degrees.

6. Switch to Green Energy

Secondary Carbon Footprint reduction

• Recycle
• Put food scraps in a compost
• Say no to plastic bags and excess unnecessary packaging
• Only buy what you need