Personal Carbon Emissions

In Scotland we each produce approximately 12.7 tonnes of carbon dioxide gas (CO2) a year – that’s roughly 3.4 tonnes of solid carbon.

 

In order to stay below 2°C "safe" global warming, we need to reduce our CO2 emissions from 12 tonnes to 1 tonne.  (This calculation has been based on ensuring equitable energy use by every person on the planet in 2050 on a mid-range projected global population prediction of 9 billion.)

Cutting Carbon

Before we can begin cutting carbon we need to understand how much and where we are spending carbon in our daily lives.  The carbon footprint below show how this 12.7 tonnes is broken down across the key areas of emissions.

This breakdown helps show where and how much carbon we are spending. It helps identify the areas of highest emissions allowing us to prioritise the areas of action and design a Carbon Cutter Plan accordingly. It also helps avoid the easy trap of making carbon and cash savings in one area only to blow it by spending the cash saving on another high carbon product or activity. For example, saving  £100 off your gas bill through improving your insulation and turning your heating down may save 1.3 tonnes of CO2, but buying a new CD player with that saved money could blow up to 2 tonnes of CO2 that has been used as energy in its manufacture. And then there is the energy in its running and eventual disposal to be considered!

What difference can I make?

Approximately 40% of the UK's emissions come directly from things we as individuals have direct control over e.g. heating, energy use, transport and even food.  So, if we all work together, we really can make a difference as individuals. Working together we can also understand what changes businesses, the council and government need to make so that carbon cutting is easier for us.