Cutting Your Carbon Footprint

1
Cutting Your Carbon Footprint

• Lose 5,000 Pounds
• in 30 Days

Green Revolution Conference Peoria IL October 15,
2009
2
Perspective On The Problem

• Typical CO2 output
• per household per year
• United States 54,600 Germany
  27,700 Sweden 14,600 Mexico
  10,600 Kenya 400

3
What YOU Can Do

• Set a goal
• 10 reduction in household CO2 emissions

4
Are We Clean Yet?

• Heating water for a 10-min shower generates 4 lbs
  of CO2
• Running the dishwasher or inefficiently hand
  washing dishes produces 2-3 lbs of CO2
• Reduce shower times to under 5 min and
  save 300 lbs of CO2 per year

5
Wear It Again, Sam

• Typical washer/dryers generate 5 lbs of CO2 per
  cycle
• CO2 savings
• Dont wash clothes so often
• Use front-loading, energy-saving machines
• Use cold water
• Dry clothes on a clothes line

6
Better A Sweater

• Heating a typical home in central Illinois
  generates about 9,000 lbs of CO2 per year.
• Turn down the thermostat
• Programmable thermostat can reduce heat
  bills by 20

7
Plug Your Electricity Leaks

• Average US household uses 50 watts every 24hrs to
  power our electronics
• 600 lbs of CO2 per yr
• Turn off electronics when not in use
• Use smart power strips (they stop leakage
  current)

8
Appliances

• Calculate energy use for specific appliances
  http//michaelbluejay.com/electricity/howmuch.html
  
• Dont use your hairdryer, let you hair dry
  naturally!

9
Think Before You Drive

• US residents drive an average of 10,000 miles
  every year.
• Keep a trip diary in your car
• Reduce your miles driven by 20 and save
  1,700lbs of CO2 per year

10
Drive Earth Smart

• Leave early
• Remove excess weight from your car (1 efficiency
  loss/100lbs)
• Think where you are going before you leave
• 55mph is most fuel - efficient speed
  (save 20-30 in fuel costs compared to
  75 mph!!!!)

11
Chew On This For A While

• Eat lower on the food chain - less (or no) meat
• One lb of beef requires
• 16 lbs of grain
• A red meat diet emits approx. 5,000 lbs of
  CO2/yr/person more than a vegetarian
  diet.
• Reduce gradually
• Buy free range or organic

12
Garbage

• Average US household produces 4.5 lbs of solid
  waste per day.
• Each lb of waste generates 2lbs of CO2
• Recycle
• Compost kitchen waste

13
Develop A Plan

• Create a journal
• Set up categories
• Commit to reductions
• Note actions taken
• Celebrate your successes!!!

14
Spread The Word

• Talk with your family
• Talk with your friends
• Help increase awareness in your community
• Plan projects at school
• Help your school change!
• Switch to renewable energy

15
Calculate Your Carbon Footprint

• Establish a benchmark
• Calculate your carbon footprint
  http//www.empowermentinstitute.net/lcd/lcd_files/
  LCDcalcNet.html

16
Set up a Cut Your Carbon Workshop

• http//www.cutyourfootprint.com/

17
Living Sustainably in Illinois Beyond your
carbon footprint
Green Revolution part 2
18
What impact will Global Climate Change have here
in Illinois?
19
Average (yearly) change in Global Temperature at
the Earths Surface
over the last 1000 years
IPCC, 2001
20
Climate datasets Eastern Illinois (Site A)
Temperatures
J. Southworth, 2005
21
Climate datasets Eastern Illinois (Site A)
Precipitation
J. Southworth, 2005
22
And

• The data for the past 8 years does not fit any of
  the models
• CO2 is rising faster than any model predicts,
• the weather is getting more extreme, more quickly
  than any model predicts, and
• the sea ice is melting faster than any model
  predicts.

23
What else could happen?

• Insect, bird, and marine mammal (whale) migration
  patterns are changing
• We are losing the bees and the amphibians
• Without the bees, we may lose some crops and
  fruits as their pollinators will be gone

24
OK Global Climate Change is a problem I
can cut my carbon footprint, now what?
25
What is living and working sustainably?

• Living in harmony with the natural world
• Using fewer resources
• Having a positive impact
• (or at least no negative impact)
• on your environment and your community

26
Basic Principles

• Reduce, reuse, reuse, reuse, recycle
• Minimize use of harmful chemicals
• Eat locally, naturally, slowly
• Maintain a healthy lifestyle

27

• At school or doing your homework
• Reduce, reuse, reuse, reuse, recycle
• Dont print if possible
• Double check for errors before printing
• Double sided print everything
• Use computer cover sheets for scratch paper
• Paper w/ higher recycled content, lt 85
  brightness
• Recycle ALL the paper waste

28
At school and at home

• Use a mug, not a throw away cup
• Walk, bike, or use the bus whenever possible,
  dont drive
• Bring lunch and snacks to school in reusable
  containers
• Clean up after yourself in eating areas
  so the school and your parents dont have to
  spray pesticides
• Use water-based, solvent free markers on white
  boards

29
At home

• Minimize use of harmful chemicals
• Use less toxic cleaning alternatives
• Prevent mold growth, keep up maintenance to
  water leakage, clean up and soak up water spills
  right away, especially on carpet!
• Minimize or eliminate pesticide use
• Alternatives include herbal mixtures, food
  and plant based treatments, get rid of standing
  water to eliminate mosquito breeding
  grounds

30
At home

• Minimize use of harmful chemicals
• Use less toxic personal care products
• (see handout)
• Reduce or eliminate unnecessary chemicals
  (chemical based air fresheners,
  antibacterial infiltrated products,
• candles)
• Use less toxic household cleaners

31

• Eat locally, naturally, slowly
• Eat locally, support local agriculture, small and
  micro farmers, food producers, farmers market
• Eat organic or non-pesticide treated foods
• Be aware of Genetically Modified Food
• Be aware of radiation treated food
• (look for the radiation flower)

32

• Eat locally, naturally, slowly
• Cans are lined with phthalate-laden materials
• Dont heat food in plastic transfer to glass or
  ceramic for heating
• Chemicals migrate when plastic is heated in
  direct contact with food
• Make sure ceramics from 3rd world (directly or
  indirectly) is free of heavy metals in
  enamels and glazes

33

• Eat locally, naturally, slowly
• Eat plant based, less processed food
• Reduce sodium in diet
• Make your own food (slow food - its healthier,
  and creates less waste)
• Eat a RAINBOW daily
• Eat or re-use your left-overs
• Compost kitchen waste

34

• Maintain a healthy lifestyle
• Exercise keep moving
• get out of that chair and walk around
• Isometrics
• In place stretches
• Walk or bike, dont drive

35

• Maintain a healthy lifestyle
• Stop smoking
• Sleep (it will help you lose weight)
• Get some sun, but avoid the tanning beds
• Use relaxation techniques / tools
• (massage, yoga, pilates, meditation)
• Smile and LAUGH

36

• We have the power to stay the same
• or to change,
• to enrich our lives and our world
• or to deplete and destroy it,
• we are all the ones who make the choice, each and
  every day.
• "If we do not change our direction, we are
  likely to end up
• where we are headed." - Chinese Proverb