GET GREEN: Decode your Carbon Footprint

When I first heard about carbon footprints I think I was listening to the radio. I was imagining little black footprints all over my floor, and you can’t imagine the horror I felt. Just when I thought eliminating my plastic water bottle consumption was enough...I learned about yet another fight against global warming.

What is your carbon footprint?

It’s the amount (in tons) of greenhouse gases that are released into the atmosphere as a result of your day-to-day activities...from driving a car to eating a turkey sandwich. The name refers to carbon dioxide, which accounts for about 84% of human-made greenhouse-gas emissions. "The word footprint describes the amount of carbon dioxide that you contribute to climate change," says Bill McKibben, author of Fight Global Warming Now.

So by ingesting that turkey sandwich, your carbon footprint includes the amount of pollutant produced by the tractor that harvested the corn that fed the turkey and the wheat that made the bread as well as the trucks that moved the turkey and the bread to the store and the car you took to the store and then home again. Wow! That’s a lot of miles for just one turkey sandwich.

You can calculate your carbon footprint by checking how many tons your household activities add to the atmosphere at: http://epa.gov/climatechange/wycd/calculator/ind_calculator.html.
The lower your number the better!

How do you reduce your emissions? You can help (through donations or time) organizations that fund clean energy or other projects that soak-up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

Did you know that the U.S. ranks second among industrialized nations in greenhouse emissions? (Australia is first). I recently heard about an ice sheet the size of Connecticut that broke away from Antarctica. While global warming is certainly upon us, it’s not too late to take measures into downsizing your own footprint.