Carbon Reduction Strategy for
Home
CARBON DIET – The average UK citizen is responsible
for nearly 11 tonnes of CO2 per year. Drop
those carbon calories with our smaller footprint challenge:
– Switch
to green electricity
– Turn
your heating down by 1oC
– Turn
off those standby buttons
– Eat
locally grown, seasonal food
– Change
to low energy light bulbs
– Wrap
up your home
– Spread
the word
– Try
not to fly
– Leave
the car at home
– Reduce,
reuse and recycle
– Useful
links
Switch to green electricity –
Burning fossil fuels to create electricity is the biggest contributor
to climate change in our country. Switching to a renewable energy
tariff is one of the biggest changes you can make. The electricity
will still be coming through the wall just like before, but it will
be produced by wind, solar and hydro power instead. Switching doesn’t
necessarily cost you more either. Compare tariffs here.
CARBON DIET: An average family could
save over 1.5 tonnes of CO2 per year by switching
to a renewable energy tariff.
Turn your heating down by 1oC
-
For every 1oC over 18oC,
you will use roughly 8% more energy. If you get cold, then dress
warmer. Simple! When you’re out for the evening or off on
holiday, make sure you turn your thermostat down to the minimum.
CARBON DIET: An average family could
save nearly 400 kgs of CO2 per year by turning
their thermostat down by 1oC.
Turn off those standby buttons –
Ditch the remote and switch it off where possible. Manufacturers
are looking to phase these out anyway so at least you’ll be
used to it when the change comes.
CARBON DIET: The average household produces
about 140 kilogram of carbon dioxide just by leaving those little
red lights on.
Eat locally grown, seasonal food
–
One third of our carbon footprints come from what we eat. When grocery
shopping, check the labels to see where the food has come from.
Alternatively, try local farmers markets and farm shops. The food
tastes great and you can guarantee its fresh!
CARBON DIET: What we eat accounts for
nearly 3.5 tonnes of CO2 per year. Buy local
and seasonal and you will slash this figure.
Change to low energy light bulbs
– Energy saving light bulbs last around 10 times longer than
ordinary light bulbs, and each bulb you fit could save up to £60
on electricity over the bulb's lifetime. Whatsmore, there are now
lots of styles and they work a lot better than when they were first
invented. For more information on low energy lighting, click here.
CARBON DIET: By replacing just three
lightbulbs, you will be saving over 400 kgs of CO2.
Wrap up your home – Fitting
or topping up insulation in your home is one of the most effective
ways to reduce your carbon emissions. Its relatively cheap and you
start making savings on your heating bill straight away. By installing
both, you could save around £200 a year!
CARBON DIET: Over the lifetime of your
insulation, you will save around 36 tonnes of CO2.
That’s volume of CO2 would fill a Boeing
767 over 44 times!
Spread the word – On average,
we have 169 friends in our social network, including friends, family,
neighbours and colleagues. Tell them what you’re doing and
encourage them to do the same. Better still you could join a campaigning
group and make sure that your voice is heard.
CARBON DIET: The more people you talk
to and influence, the bigger the reduction in CO2.
Go spread the word…
Try not to fly – You’ve
all heard it, flying isn’t great for the planet. Try not to
fly unless necessary, especially if there are greener ways to get
there. Flying not only produces lots of CO2,
but combined with travelling at high altitude, it also has lots
of other negative climatic effects. Travelling to the near continent
and around the UK is often faster by train and often cheaper if
you book in advance or purchase a railcard. Even travelling further
afield, there are still ways to get there without flying. Let the
journey become the destination and click here.
CARBON DIET: By just cutting one return
flight to Malaga in Spain, you will save nearly half a tonne of
CO2.
Leave the car at home –
According to the National Travel Survey, 42% of journeys are under
two miles. These journeys could be made easily on foot or by bike
and your body will thank you for it in the long run! Whatsmore,
cycling is often faster. On an average journey of four miles in
Central London, cycling is the fastest mode of transport. For more
information on local cycle routes and cycling, click here.
CARBON DIET: Drop those daily two mile
journeys by car and you will be saving nearly 500 kgs of CO2
per year.
Reduce, reuse and recycle - Don’t
we buy a lot of stuff nowadays and a lot of it gets thrown straight
in the bin. On average every person in the UK throws away their
own body weight in rubbish every 7 weeks! When you buy new products
it makes sense to buy the best quality you can afford. That way
they will last longer and you won’t have to replace them as
often. However, you don’t always have to buy new. Check out
websites likeebay and freecycle. Finally, when it comes to throwing
things out, you can reduce your carbon footprint if you recycle.
For instance, just one recycled aluminium can saves enough energy
to run a television set for three hours!
CARBON DIET: An average person could
save masses of CO2 each year by simply buying
less stuff!
