At some point or other the need to live in a manner which is a little friendlier to the environment hits all of us who have a conscious and when the thought hits it hits home quite hard, considering just what we appear to be doing to our environment. Cutting one’s carbon footprint is perhaps the first area one would look as a means through which to take some action that can contribute towards making an immediate impact and you should not be deterred, even if it may often feel like you’re fighting a losing battle.
Back in 1960 the average person was responsible for emitting 11.2 tonnes of CO2 and as shocking as that may be, the emergence of more people seeking to lead cleaner, ‘greener’ lives along with improvements the development of the technology through which we contribute to emissions drove the per capita emissions down to 7.1 tonnes by 2013. That’s all good and well because it is indeed an improvement, but it’s surely not enough when one takes into account factors such as population growth. It would appear that the total amount of emissions comes very close to those days when they were especially high per person.
We still have quite some way to go as well when we compare our per capita emissions to those of ‘greener’ countries like Sweden, where it was only 4.6 tonnes per person. You can definitely do your bit though and you should take it upon yourself to hold yourself accountable for the little bit you try to contribute towards reducing your carbon footprint. A little goes a very long way and if everyone forming part of your personal and professional network did the same, your small contributions could contribute towards making a huge difference.
It starts with building more environmentally friendly actions into those things you do habitually, which can be quite challenging in the beginning, but if you keep at it you’ll eventually come right.
Around the House
Working towards reducing the pile of rubbish you take outside for the refuse removers is a great place to start as it simply means you’re consuming less of those goods which require lots of energy to go through their production process. Something as simple as using a reusable jam jar to re-fill with the equivalent ‘re-fill’ will do in conjunction with perhaps flushing less (each flush uses about 13 liters) and even making some longer-term changes like insulating your walls and boiler. The carbon emissions of a home can be massive depending on the kind of heating they use, so switching to cleaner alternatives and fuels could make a big impact. You could consider switching to natural gas which you can avail at brothersoil.com or a similar site. You also have the option of using propane for HVAC purposes. These fuels tend to be more energy-efficient and cost-effective, and tend to produce significantly lower carbon emissions compared to natural gas and other petroleum-based fuels
Speaking of HVAC, you should also ensure that your home’s heating and cooling systems function properly. This, you could do by scheduling regular inspections, and making necessary fixes, which ensures that it delivers its most energy-efficient performance. A properly functioning heater or A/C will consume lower energy, and come with lower energy bills. A company like Sandri Energy (https://www.sandri.com/) could help you with this transition. There’s so much more that you could do, but these are some good places to start.
Travelling
Ditching your car for a bus makes for one of the more serious ways through which to considerably cut into your emissions, with a mid-range polluting vehicle giving off around 2.6 tonnes of CO2 per year (for the 10,000 mile yearly average). With many other pro green living enthusiasts on board the same bus you take, especially with the monthly bus pass, that can add up to a lot of emissions offset from pouring into what is becoming an increasingly fragile atmosphere, so you should definitely do your bit.
