Only
40% of the average American’s carbon footprint is due to their direct energy
use. The other 60% is indirect; it
comes from everything we buy and use—goods and services. Pay attention to your consumption and
waste habits, and you will find lots of opportunities to conserve.
By
working together and making small changes in our lifestyle, we can make big changes
to the planet.
Follow
our tips, reduce your carbon footprint, and in many cases you will also save
money.
Home
Use
•
Change incandescent light bulbs to compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) -
save more than 2/3rds of the energy of a regular incandescent. Each bulb can save $40 or more over its
lifetime.
•
Switch your appliances and electronics to high energy-efficiency rated ENERGY
STAR qualified products
•
Switch off all appliances/chargers when not in use
•
Heat and cool smartly by cleaning air filters and replacing old equipment
•
Lower your heating, and hot water thermostat settings. Raise those in your
fridge, freezer, and A/C. Reduce 500 pounds of CO2 a year for each degree
•
Use programmable thermostat – Costs about $50 or less and will save you
that much or more in the first year- Build/renovate in an energy efficient
manner, consider solar panels
•
Seal and insulate your home – the less air that escapes your home, the
less energy it takes to heat and cool your home
•
Close curtains/blinds
•
Use renewable energy that you can buy yourself or purchase from your local
utility/energy provide
•
Be green in your yard by composting food scraps and reducing yard waste
•
Conserve water in your home
•
Install a low-flow showerhead that keeps the pressure firm while reducing your
hot water bill – that reduces app. 1ton CO2 over showerheads 7-year
lifespan
•
Use liquid detergent instead of powder, wash your clothes in cool water and
hang them out to dry Fill your washing machine right up and lower the heat
setting
•
Only boil as much water as you need
Waste
less...OPT2REDUCE,
OPT2REUSE,
and OPT2RECYCLE – reducing waste in landfills reduces landfill gas
emissions
•
Don’t use plastic shopping bags.
•
Buy goods with minimal/no packaging.
•
Recycle paper/cardboard/glass/aluminum/tin/plastic.
•
Compost food and garden waste.
•
Print documents rarely and in a condensed, double-sided format.
•
Re-use when possible, or give unwanted items to others for re-use.
On
The Road
Drives
smart and smoothly -Studies have shown up to 30% of the difference in mpg is
due to driving habits alone.
You
could save more than a ton of CO2 per year by:
• Avoid hard accelerations, hard braking, and
idling.
• Don’t rev too high (2,000-2,500 rpm) before
changing up a gear
• Maintain a steady speed
• Anticipating your stops and starts
• Switch off the engine when in traffic jams.
Maintenance:
• Tune your ride- a well-maintained car is
more fuel-efficient, produces fewer greenhouse gas emissions, is more reliable,
and is safer!
• Replace your air, oil and fuel filters
according to schedule.
• Tires - Keep your tires properly inflated
-
under-inflation increases tire wear, reduces your fuel economy by up to 3
percent and leads to higher greenhouse gas emissions
-
properly inflated tires can save appr. 400-700 pounds of CO2 per year
Give your car a break:
• Drive less, use public transportation,
carpool, or walk/bike whenever possible.
• Do all your errands in one trip, park and
walk in town centers
• Plan trips to avoid congestion, road works,
getting lost
• Switch air conditioning off or use sparingly
• Keep short journeys to a minimum
• Household fuel efficiency - If your
household has two cars and one is used mostly for commuting, make the commuting
car a real gas sipper
• Remove roof racks/boxes and cycle racks when
not in use, don’t carry unnecessary loads
Air
Travel
Fly
less... reduce your flight-related emissions and cut your travel costs.
• Short airplane flights (less than 500 miles)
are equal in emissions to traveling in a car that gets between 10 and 20 mpg.
For short flights, use a high mileage car instead, and rideshare! Or even
better, take the train or a bus!
• Don’t fly unless it is necessary, it is
extremely emissions intensive
• Use the train or bus for short-haul
destinations; both get the equivalent of between 50 and 80 miles per gallon
• Vacation locally rather than abroad
• Tele/video-conference rather than flying to
business meetings
• If you must fly, go direct to your
destination
• Combine trips where possible