Reducing your carbon footprint: It's a-boot time

Header image for Interrobang article CREDIT: CANDIS BROSS
There are many easy steps you can take to reduce your carbon footprint.

Carbon footprint: it’s a term we hear more and more each day, but what is it exactly? Well, it’s not a shoe size, it has nothing to do with carbs and it’s not something you leave on wet cement.

A carbon footprint is the measure of greenhouse gasses released into the atmosphere from our day-to-day actions. These gasses typically have a high concentration of carbon atoms and are responsible for blocking heat from leaving our planet, much like the windows of a greenhouse. The resulting climate changes have begun to wreak havoc on ecosystems around the world and if we continue to live as recklessly as we do, it’s going to be a bleak future for everyone.

As young adults, it’s time to take charge and consider our environmental responsibility. Driving across the street for a burger may not seem like the end of the world, but these little conveniences are adding up to one big problem.

The cornerstone of reducing carbon emissions is to drive less. Exhaust from trains, planes and automobiles have been the culprit of emitting greenhouse gasses since the industrial revolution, so think of carpooling, public transit or biking whenever possible. If you’re travelling long distances try to avoid air travel, as it is by far the most harmful method of transportation for the environment.

If you don’t own a car, you’re already a step ahead of the competition but there’s still a million other ways to increase your lead.

Swapping out your incandescent light bulbs in favour of compact florescent lights (CFLs) will not only radically reduce your energy bill but will also lower your gas emissions by 750 to 1,200 lbs. in its lifespan.

When we use electricity, it’s typically generated from fossil fuels that produce huge amounts of carbonic gasses as a byproduct, so installing electronics that draw less power conveniently reduces our carbon footprint. It also gives us a nice kickback in our wallet, and there’s nothing better than getting money back for doing some good in the world.

Unfortunately, travel and electronics aren’t the only things that produce greenhouse gasses. Nearly everything in life leaves a carbon footprint when traced back far enough – including our diet.

Eating at restaurants, cooking at home or consuming imported fruits all comes with a complimentary carbon price tag. Unless we bike to the nearest farmer’s field, our food is generally shipped to stores in a gas guzzling transport truck. The fumes from these deliveries accounts for 25 per cent of the world’s carbon emissions, 18 per cent of which are just from farming livestock.

It may seem like a small percentage, but if you eat vegetarian for just one day a week you will reduce your yearly carbon emissions by over 700 lbs. On the other hand, going completely vegetarian will decrease your annual carbon footprint by a staggering two and a half tons. To put this into perspective, a tree only eliminates one ton of carbon every 40 years. Unless we go out planting trees every summer, reducing our meat intake is an easy win for both the environment and our health.

When it comes down to the nitty gritty though, reducing our carbon footprint is really a matter of conserving energy and supporting the local community. Sure, installing solar panels and buying a hybrid car are admirable decisions, but in the middle of college who has the money to buy lunch, let alone a car.

It’s the little careless acts that got us into this mess, and it’s going to be the little courteous acts that help clean it up.