![]() However, turning down your thermostat by just a degree or so can cut your heating bill by 10%, and reduce emissions. That needs to change drastically if we are to limit global warming. In the UK, heating accounts for a third of emissions and in the US around half of homes are heated using gas. In the EU, heating accounts for 63% of household energy consumption. Heating hom es is one of the main sources of emissions, especially in countries where the predominant source of heating is burning fossil fuels. Some changes to your day-to-day activities at home make more difference than others. (Read more about how we can cut down the carbon footprint of our daily commute. In many places, the majority of car journeys are only for relatively short distances, and walking or biking are great alternative which can also help keep you healthy.įor longer journeys (and where it's available), public transport tends to be a far lower carbon option than driving. If you have a car, simply cutting down on how much you use it can be a great first step to reducing your emissions. Private transport is one of the world's largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions, and in countries like the UK and the US, the transport sector – dominated by cars, trucks, buses and motorbikes – is now responsible for emitting more greenhouse gases than any other. (Read more about how cutting food waste can help the climate. )Īnother way to make big emissions savings is to avoid food waste, which amounts to 900 million tonnes a year (or 23 million large truckloads a year). (Read more about the climate benefits of veganism and vegetarianism. )Īs Future Planet has investigated, small tweaks to your diet and the way you cook can have a significant payoff – from batch cooking, to focusing on using fewer animal products rather than food miles. (Read more about the lowest-carbon protein. ![]() For example, cow's milk scores worse than plant-based alternatives on land use, greenhouse gas emissions, water use and pollution from fertiliser, while different kinds of protein can also have different emissions. If everyone in the world shifted to a plant-based diet, it would free up 75% of the world's agricultural land for other uses – such as a range of biodiverse and carbon-capturing ecosystems.īut even if you don't go entirely plant-based, switching individual foods for a lower-carbon option is one way to reduce emissions from your diet. Switching to a plant-based diet could save you around 0.8 tonnes of CO2e each year. (Read more about the fastest way s aviation could cut its carbon emissions. Meanwhile, larger planes could switch to alternative fuels such as biofuels, synthetic fuels made from renewable energy or, in the very long term, hydrogen. Norway, for instance wants all short-haul flights leaving its airports to be electricity - powered by 2040. Smaller planes could soon fly on electric engines. )Ĭhanging the way some aircraft are powered could also soon be within reach. (Read more about how you can reduce your emissions from flying. Flying economy also tends to be far lower emission than flying business or first class. Or you could try to fly half as often for twice as long. You could try taking the train or bus, which have far lower emissions, one or both ways instead. But decreasing the demand for flights is entirely possible, and doesn't mean you can't travel. A return flight from London to New York, for example, emits almost a tonne of CO2, and the climate impact is even larger due to other non-CO2 emissions from aircraft.Ī blanket ban on flying would be unthinkable, of course. While emissions from aviation overall are relatively small, each flight emits a lot of greenhouse gases. Despite a downturn due to the pandemic, its emissions are now on the rise again. From 2013 to 2019, emissions from the aviation sector grew 30%, according to a report by the International Council on Clean Transportation. Īviation contributes around one billion tonnes of CO2 emissions every year. If all flights on Earth were suddenly stopped, it would in an instant halt at least 2.5% of all CO2 emissions. ![]() This Earth Day, Future Planet examines some of the most impactful, immediate changes you can make today to help lower your emissions. Much of the change needed to curb climate change quickly goes well beyond what any individual can do – from improving renewable energy infrastructure, to a rapid phase-out of fossil fuels. Uppermost in the minds of many is climate change – and the need to rapidly cut global greenhouse gas emissions. ![]() Many millions of people around the world are expected to participate in Earth Day on Saturday in support of environmental protection. ![]()
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