Carbon footprint factsheet

A carbon footprint is the total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions caused directly and indirectly by an individual, organization, event or product.

GREENHOUSE GASES FROM AVERAGE FOOD CONSUMPTION

POUNDS OF CO2E PER SERVING

TRANSPORTATION GREENHOUSE GASES, 2016

SOME ASTONISHING FACTS

• Fossil fuels and coal make up 67% of generated electricity. Besides electricity generation, transportation is the next big CO2 producer.
• US carbon footprint is 16.5 tons per person, per year whereas EU’s per capita carbon footprint is 6.8 tons per year. The per capita average for the world as a whole is even lower at 5 tons of CO2e per year. India’s emissions are still very low – at only 1.8 tonnes of CO2 per capita.
• One tonne of CO2 is produced upon combustion of 300 litres of petrol. This is enough to drive a car 4000 kilometres.
• Your water has a high carbon footprint. You may think that your water comes from local lakes, rivers etc, the efforts to maintain and purify water takes up energy.
• Similar to water, the use of paper contributes to carbon emissions, deforestation. Deforestation is responsible for more greenhouse-gas emissions than all the world’s cars, trucks, planes, and ships put together. The trees release the carbon they are storing into the atmosphere when they’re felled. 
• Food production accounts for 83% of carbon emissions. Businesses that produce food contribute to emissions of carbon dioxide etc and the methane released by their livestock like sheep, cattle, and goats. Transporting food accounts for 11% of carbon emissions.
• An estimated one-third of all food produced for human consumption in the world (~1.3 billion tonnes) is either lost or wasted each year. This food wastage represents not only a devastating misuse of natural resources, but also a bigger carbon footprint. 
• Landfills are incredible sources of greenhouse gases and pollution. Every pound of organic materials in landfills you throw away, you’ll create one pound of greenhouse gases. As organic materials in landfills decays, it releases carbon dioxide and methane.
• By driving two miles, 0.88 kilograms of CO2 is released into the air, but walking the same distance only releases 0.039 kilograms and riding a bicycle just 0.017 kilograms of carbon dioxide.
• China accounted for 23 percent of greenhouse gas emissions associated with information technology. Increased emissions from this area are also experienced in Brazil, India, and Indonesia. These will increase 9 percent annually through 2020. 
• A vegetarian typically has a smaller carbon footprint than a meat eater but the plant-based diet isn’t practical everywhere, especially for those who live in dry or cold places that cannot support the growth of most vegetable crops.
• Approximately 1,800 gallons of water is needed per pound to raise a cow, the amount of water needed in order to successfully farm in desert-like climates can be huge and is unsustainable. 2000 - 3000 litres of water required to produced 1kg of rice.

WAYS TO REDUCE CARBON FOOTPRINT

• Conserve water, especially at places with high carbon foot print.
• Eat local, vegetarian, or organic foods.
• Organic food requires 30-50% less energy during production but requires one-third more hours of human labor compared to typical farming practices, making it more expensive.
• Walk, bike, carpool, use mass transit, or drive a best-in-class vehicle. Avoid unnecessary travel.
• Avoid flying when possible, fly less frequently, and fly economy class. Prince William flies economy class and leads by example. Don’t fly on private jets.
• Avoid taking vacations at far away places, and take more frequent and driveable staycations closer to home.
• Increase your use of video-conferencing tools and reduce your work related air travel.
• Smaller homes & apartments use less energy. 
• Use a low-flow shower head. Setting the temperature to 50°C helps improve a hot water heater’s efficiency.
• Turn off your TV, computer, and other electronics when not in use. Unplug unused electronics.
• Choose energy-efficient lighting.
• Recycle household waste.
• Buy products with minimal packaging to reduce waste.
• While shopping, purchase items with lower carbon footprint.

Everything we buy has a carbon footprint.

Everything we use has a carbon footprint. It is impossible to reduce the carbon emissions to zero, no matter how hard we try. There is a way to balance your emissions by purchasing carbon offsets. This is a practical and affordable way to do something about those remaining emissions and support the renewable energy projects that help our planet. 

Flying is bad for the planet

• Flying may be a large portion of your carbon footprint. The aviation industry accounts for 11% of all transportation-related emissions in the United States. Take one round-trip flight between New York and San Francisco, and you’ve generated about 0.9 metric tons of carbon dioxide per person. That is equivalent of 20% of the greenhouse gases that your car emits over an entire year. 
• For perspective, the global average was about five tons of carbon dioxide per person in 2013.
• Carbon footprint is defined as the amount of greenhouse gases and specifically carbon dioxide emitted by a person's activities or a product's manufacture and transport, during a given period.
• A typical passenger vehicle emits about 4.6 metric tons of carbon dioxide per year. In addition to carbon dioxide, automobiles produce methane and nitrous oxide from the tailpipe and hydro fluorocarbon emissions from leaking air conditioners. The emissions of these gases are small in comparison to carbon dioxide; however, the impact of these emissions have a higher global warming potential than carbon dioxide.
• About 20,000 planes are in use around the world, serving three billion passengers annually. By 2040, more than 50,000 planes could be in service, and they are expected to fly more often.
• The most effective way to reduce your carbon footprint is to fly less often. The longer the distance, the more efficient flying becomes, because cruising requires less fuel than other stages of flight. So it’s certainly better to fly cross-country than to drive solo. If you’re taking a short trip, it may be better to drive.
• Flying nonstop can help. About 25% of airplane emissions come from landing, taxiing and taking off. 
• When you buy carbon offsets, you pay money toward replanting trees, which absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
• To offset the almost 0.9-metric-ton carbon footprint of a single passenger traveling from New York to San Francisco, Sustainable Travel International, which runs offset program, offers two choices: Donate $8.95 to a wind farm in Texas or donate $10.75 to a forest conservation program in Peru.
• The emissions associated with flying in business class are about three times as great as flying in economy class. In business class and first class, seats are bigger, so fewer people are being moved by the same amount of fuel. A first-class seat could have a carbon footprint of nine times as an economy one. Economy passengers have something to be happy about: smaller carbon footprints.
• The bio fuel is estimated to cut at least 60% of greenhouse gas emissions compared to regular jet fuel. It cuts the emissions used to make the fuel as well as the emissions from burning it.
• Researchers say that airplane crashes kills about a thousand people annually, whereas plane emissions kill about ten thousand people each year. About 80% by cruising emissions at high altitudes and 20% due to take off & landing emissions causing cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. 
• Airplane pollution deaths at 10,000 a year still represent a small share. Emissions from ships kill an estimated 60,000 people a year, according to a 2007 study. The annual total death toll from air pollution is about a million, according to the UNDP.

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Public transportation must be subsidized and encouraged in every form, especially if it is using electricity. Usage of personalized transportation must be restricted, discouraged and penalized. Business class & first class air travel should be discouraged and penalized. Pollution control norms for automobiles, industries etc must be strictly enforced. Environment safeguarding awareness must be promoted and encouraged.