How YOU can help check CO2 in atmosphere.

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What You Can Do How much carbon dioxide are you contributing to the atmosphere?

Here are some ways to cut down

By ANDREA DORFMAN

http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1178697,00.html

 

Posted Thursday, Mar. 30, 2006

Each American contributes about 22 tons of carbon dioxide emissions to the

atmosphere each year, well above the world average of about 6 tons per capita.

Here are some of the things you can do to reduce your share: In and Around the

House Pick an electricity provider that generates at least half of its power

from the sun, wind, water and other renewable sources. Plug leaks and make

sure you have adequate insulation so that you can use less heat or

air-conditioning. Caulking and weather-stripping doors and windows can slash CO2

emissions by 1,700 lbs. per year. If your water heater is more than five years

old, wrapping it in an insulating jacket will save 1,000 lbs. of CO2 emissions

annually. (Keeping its thermostat at 120°F or less will save another 550 lbs. of

CO2.) Use a programmable thermostat. It will save you about 1,800 lbs. of CO2

annually. Invest in energy-efficient appliances. (Ones with the EPA’s EnergyStar

label are a good bet.) Replacing a 20-year-old

refrigerator with a high-efficiency model can lower CO2 emissions by 1 ton per

year. A new washing machine that uses less water and less energy can cut

emissions by 440 lbs. Replace incandescent light bulbs with compact

fluorescents. They’re more expensive, but they last up to 13 times as long and

each one saves about half a ton of CO2 over its lifetime. If you exchanged the

five most frequently used bulbs in your house for compact fluorescents, you

would save about 700 lbs. of CO2 (and $90 in energy costs) a year. If every U.S.

household swapped three 75-watt regular bulbs that stay on about six hours a day

for three 20-watt compact fluorescents, that would save more than 60 trillion

lbs. of CO2 per year—equivalent to the annual emissions of 3.5 million cars.

If you live somewhere sunny, install a solar-heating system to help provide hot

water. The CO2 savings: up to 720 lbs. a year. Recycle! Returning aluminum

cans, glass bottles, plastic, newspaper and cardboard

can reduce your CO2 output by 850 lbs. annually. Buying food and other items in

recyclable or reusable containers saves an additional 230 lbs. of CO2. Plant

trees and shrubs around your house. They not only provide shade, which lowers

energy consumption, but also store carbon. One deciduous tree can remove 50 lbs.

of carbon from the atmosphere annually. Cut the grass with an old-fashioned

push mower instead of a motorized one. Savings: 80 lbs. of CO2 a year. On the

Road Replace your gas guzzler with a fuel-smart car. A car that gets 20 miles

per gallon emits about 50 tons of CO2 over its lifetime; one with double that

mileage emits about half as much. Buying a new car that gets just 3 m.p.g. more

than your old one can reduce CO2 emissions by 3,000 lbs. a year. The best

solution: Purchase a hybrid instead. (A hybrid vehicle that averages 45 m.p.g.

contributes at least 5 tons less CO2 to the atmosphere than a vehicle that gets

under 20 m.p.g.) Carpool, bike, walk

or take public transportation as often as you can. Leaving your car at home

just two days a week saves 1,590 lbs. of CO2 emissions per year. To calculate

how much CO2 your lifestyle generates, go to: fightglobalwarming.com

Sources: Natural Resources Defense Council; U.S. Environmental Protection

Agency; fightglobalwarming.com; Rocky Mountain Institute

 

 

" Our ideal is not the spirituality that withdraws from life but the conquest

of life by the power of the spirit. " - Aurobindo.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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