Reduce your carbon footprint: 10% per year
You've calculated your carbon footprint,
You've compared it with the national average,
What next?
You've compared it with the national average,
What next?
Reduce by 10%
We suggest:
• estimate your footprint for the last 12 months (or the last calendar year)
• set a target for a 10% reduction next year, and then a further 10% reduction each subsequent year
Why bother?
• you switch from being part of the problem to being part of the solution - less guilt!
• it makes it easier to suggest to others (individuals, businesses, etc) that they cut their carbon footprints - otherwise you risk being accused of hypocrisy
• it encourages the development of a low-carbon economy
• you increase the number of people living a lower-carbon lifestyle, which adds to the pressure on reluctant politicians to make appropriate decisions.
If you need encouragement that personal lifestyle changes can add up to a major force, think of Fair Trade which has expanded massively in the last few years, all down to the personal purchasing decisions of individuals.
Our experience
We started measuring our carbon footprint in 2006 for the year 2005: it was 11.9 tonnes equivalent CO2, i.e. not much less than the UK average of 13.4 tonnes - and we thought we were pretty environmentally aware!
We settled on a plan of a reduction of 10% per year - we considered more, but 20% per year seems difficult and would probably not be something that we could advocate to others. A smaller reduction e.g. 5% seemed half-hearted. So we settled on a 10% reduction per year i.e. to 90% of the previous year's target.
Initially we were on track:
| Year | Target (tonnes equivalent CO2) | Actual CO2 footprint |
| 2005 | 11.9 | |
| 2006 | 10.7 (i.e. 90% of 11.9) | 9.6 |
| 2007 | 9.6 (i.e. 90% of 10.7) | 9.1 |
| 2008 | 8.6 (i.e. 90% of 9.6) | 7.9 |
| 2009 | 7.7 (i.e. 90% of 8.6) | 7.7 |
| 2010 | 6.9 (i.e. 90% of 7.7) | 6.8 |
| 2011 | 6.2 (i.e. 90% of 6.9) | 6.0 |
| 2012 | 6.0 (i.e. 96% of 6.2) | 5.9 |
| 2013 | 5.8 (i.e. 96% of 6.0) | 6.0 |
| 2014 | 5.6 (i.e. 96% of 5.8) | 5.9 |
| 2015 | 5.4 (i.e. 96% of 5.6) | 6.2 |
After 2011, we reached half of our initial carbon footprint (and less than half of the average UK value). This was achieved via the changes of
• stopping flying
• 55% reduction in car miles
• 72% reduction in electricity use (via energy efficiency and solar pv panels)
• 30% reduction in gas use
• switching to organic food, and local food where possible
• buying stuff only when needed.
None of this felt difficult.
From 2011, our plan has been to reduce at a rate of 4% per year, so that our footprint stays at less than half of the per person value needed to meet the UK Government's 2020 and 2050 targets.
We are finding this difficult, partly because of the lack of government action, e.g. to make walking and cycling easier.