In today's environmentally conscious world, you may find yourself looking for ways to contribute more by polluting less. Reducing your carbon footprint--the measure of the impact of your activities on the environment--is a good start. Carbon management company Carbon Footprint explains that a person's carbon footprint is a measure of the greenhouse gases they produce through both primary activities, like driving, and secondary activities, like consuming products that created greenhouse gasses during their production and shipping.
On the Road
Cars are a major source of carbon dioxide emissions, so driving makes a large contribution to a person's carbon footprint. If you're in the market for a new car, buying a hybrid, fuel-efficient vehicle is certainly a great way to reduce your footprint. If not, though, you can reduce your driving footprint in many other ways.
Walk or ride a bike whenever possible, and carpool or take public transportation to limit the number of vehicles on the road. When you do drive your own car, go slow and easy, as rapid acceleration, frequent braking and speeding waste a lot of extra fuel. Keep your car's load as light as possible, too, since carrying an extra 100 pounds in your car can reduce your fuel economy by two percent, says the Environmental Defense Fund.
At Home
Approximately 17 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions in the United States come from homes, to the tune of 9,000 pounds per person per year, reports the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Reduce your impact by decreasing your energy consumption--adjust your thermostat up or down by a few degrees according to the seasons, switch to energy-efficient lighting, wash clothes in cold water and use the power-save option on your computers. Recycling also decreases your carbon footprint, since trash emits methane when it decomposes in landfills. About 1,060 pounds of greenhouse gases are produced by each person each year simply by throwing away garbage.
On the Table
While any type of farming creates greenhouse gases, raising meat has a larger carbon footprint than raising vegetables. It takes several calories of grains to produce one calorie of meat, and animals produce greenhouse gases, such as methane and nitrous oxide. If every person in the United States substituted vegetables for chicken for just one meal a week, it would be the equivalent of taking half a million cars off the road, says the Environmental Defense Fund. Buying from local farmers also helps reduce your carbon footprint, since fewer fossil fuels are burned during transport.
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