Doing your bit - why bother?

- Editor


Industrialisation in Western countries has up till now produced the overwhelming majority of carbon emissions but with the relentless industrialisation of developing countries like China, India, Brazil, and Mexico the scale of emissions is set to increase hugely and rapidly. Already China is neck and neck with the US in terms of CO2 emissions. Most scientists believe that it would be dangerous to let levels of atmospheric CO2 rise by more than another 500 billion tonnes.

While the developed world would like to limit emissions from all countries, developing countries are resisting the restriction on their growth that such a limitation would mean. A fairer approach is sought and it has been suggested that the remaining capacity should be divided equitably among the world’s population - leading to a single per capita allowance. Tradeable individual carbon quotas would not unfairly target poorer households. The allowance for each person would be the same, and depend on the country-level greenhouse gas emissions quota for each year.

In December 2006, the UK’s then environment secretary, David Miliband*, proposed a card system for recording carbon-emissions entitlements, whereby purchases of food, energy, transport etc, would be debited against an individual’s allowance via this card at point of sale. Because of the possible rewards from saving (and then selling) one’s own carbon credits, the scheme would get people to choose goods and activities with lower carbon cost.



A similar scheme proposed in the US** would see a universal carbon tax applied at a specified rate per tonne. This would then be refunded through income tax rebates and,  being the same amount for everyone, would benefit poorer households more than rich ones.

Neither of these schemes is in the implementation stage and indeed are still only two of many possibilities. (See the table over the page for relative advantages of either option). In the meantime the question becomes, “Is it worthwhile to take voluntary individual action?”

When you consider the size of the problem it is tempting to believe that an individual can do nothing. However, as with many things a small contribution multiplied millions of times over could make a worthwhile difference and even enable a ‘lag’ period for developing countries to conform to approved limits.

The first step is to find out more about where/how the emissions related to our western lifestyles are produced. There are many helpful websites and a great deal of information available. Some of the best are: www.carbonzero.co.nz, www.eeca.govt.nz, www.ecosphere.co.nz, www.thebigswitch.com.au,  www.carbonequity.info, www.eia.doe.gov etc.

The average westerner accounts for about 12 tonnes of CO2 emitted per year. Of these emissions approximately half come from activities over which we have personal control - transport, home energy use or food choice. Up to another 25% come from areas over which we can exert a degree of influence.

The second step then is identifying those areas of our lifestyles where a change in behaviour can produce either a reduction in direct emissions or exert influence over indirect emissions.  Where it is not possible to reduce emissions it may be possible to offset them by buying carbon credits. However it is important to check out that these are good quality and really do go into schemes which produce new carbon sinks.

While New Zealand has a way to go in getting together a comprehensive emissions policy, individuals can already do their own bit to reduce their carbon emissions footprint. The following*** are areas to look at:

Transport: Use your car less if possible. Buy a smaller, more efficient car - although it might actually be better to delay buying a new car when the carbon cost of manufacture is taken into account! Use the air-conditioning in your car as little as possible, and change your driving style so that it is more efficient and steady.

Public transport is usually better. Flying is the most devastating of all forms of transport for the environment. It is better to take alternative means of public transport - buses, trains, ferries.

Household Energy: Heating your home accounts for a big proportion of the energy budget in New Zealand in winter. This can be reduced significantly by better insulation and by being prepared to accept a slightly cooler ambient temperature in the home, eg. 18C instead of 20C.

Water heating is a year-round big energy cost item. Having properly insulated hot water cylinders and installing a timer on or by the shower is recommended. Clothes driers are the most wasteful appliance and cutting their use is a big saving of carbon cost.

Computers and TVs, DVDs and other electronic devices left on standby can consume appreciable amounts of electricity. A DVD recorder left on standby for most of the day, could use as much electricity as it does in 2 hours of use. Turn off your appliances when they are not in use!

Food: Much energy is used in the production and distribution of food - from the manufacturing of fertiliser for crops to the processing of food.

To lessen your carbon footprint it is best to buy organic produce from your local area and keep away from processed and packaged food as much as possible. For instance, the production of aluminium used to make soft drink cans is one of the most energy intensive industries in the world.

*Wintour, P. (2006) Miliband plans carbon trading ‘’credit cards’’ for everyone. The Guardian. December 11, 2006

**Mankiw, N.G. (2007) One Answer to Global Warming: A New Tax. The New York Times. September 16, 2007

 

***Further reading: www.lowcarbonlife.net, www.carboncommentary.comor refer to the book, How to Live a Low Carbon Life: The individual’sguide to stopping climate change, by Chris Goodall, EarthscanPublications. This book is in a UK context but the general themes are applicable more widely.