Carbon Footprint

I calculated my carbon footprint today.  Some people do not know what this means.  Here is a definition for the term, carbon footprint.  I used a number of different carbon footprint calculators, and then took the average of all of them.  This may or may not be a good way of finding out what my carbon footprint actually is, but I think that since the different calculators have such high degrees of variability and complexity, it may be my only option.  

Here are the calculators I used:

BP (nice little flash interactive thing going on, comprehensive): 9 tons per year

Carbon Counter (ridiculously simple, mostly interested in selling off-sets): 4.5 tones per year

EPA (my favorite, very comprehensive, also provides results for hypothetical reduction scenarios, the site is unattractive though and seems a bit daunting): 4.072 tons per year

Sterling Planet (straight forward, made me feel good because they say the average is 27 tons/yr): 3.12 tons/year

Climate Crisis (only really focuses on direct energy uses, i.e. cars, planes, and heating/lighting): 3.1 tons/year

Ok, so my grand total average whatever you want to call it is 4.76 tons/year.  Not too bad.  

Now for some issues with these calculators.  Clearly, they aren't taking into effect the collective transgressions that are committed constantly.  For example, we are all responsible for the jet fuel that is consumed  to transport packages, goods, soldiers, etc.  We are all responsible for the food we buy.  Meat does not appear in a cooler in a supermarket, a cooler that is on at all times, using energy at all times.  The meat is transported from god-knows-where (you can find out though) to the supermarket in a truck.  Trucks use an insane amount of fuel, especially when they are dragging 20 tons of meat behind them.  How do we account for the energy that is consumed to create plastics bottles, or computers, or refrigerators?  The list goes on.  The problem with these calculators is that they do not address our world society as one entity, they are breaking it down into individual responsibilities, which in theory, is logical.  We can each make a difference in our own way, but we can only make an actual change when we create a paradigm shift in the philosophy of how we live our lives.  I guess for most people, these calculators are designed to show them how much they are contributing personally to a global problem, and the hope is that these results will inspire an alternate course of action.  My own carbon output is relatively low, so I was not surprised or worried about my own results.  I know there are things that I can change, but I realize that making a difference means reaching out beyond my own personal impact.  

As for my own course of action on how to reduce my footprint, the options are fairly straightforward.

Here are the facts:

I do not drive a car or take public transportation.

I rent an apartment in a building that is extremely inefficient.

I do not use air conditioning, ever, if possible.

I am not careful enough with my use of electricity.

It is not possible for me to alter my living conditions at this point in my life, i.e. energy-saving appliances, better insulation, a choice in energy provider and the type of energy provided.

I am just barely wealthy enough to make small changes in my life.

Here is what I can do to reduce my footprint:

I can switch to energy saving light bulbs, although this can be problematic, because I need good light when I am painting.  It may be possible to only paint during the daytime, which would be an ideal solution.

I can turn my computer off when I am done with it, make a better effort to keep the lights off in my house when they are not necessary, and try to convince my new roommates that air conditioning isn't really needed.

I can buy food locally more often, visit the farmer's market once a week, stop succumbing to the convenience of supermarkets.

I can encourage others to ride bikes locally, as opposed to driving their cars.

There are some other issues in my own life that I can address that would have an indirect effect on my own footprint.  One example is recycling.  Our building does not recycle.  Everything goes into one dumpster in the center of the building, and that dumpster is emptied once or twice a week.  This can change.  I have spoken to the landlord and he has agreed to participate in any reasonable projects or solutions that I can come up with to keep "valuable" materials out of the garbage.  I say "valuable" because I know that we are still down-cycling materials, but this has to be better than the landfill.  I can also change something in my own life, my eating habits.  Eating habits often dictate how our daily routines, weekly routines, monthly routines are performed.  Although it does not directly affect my own carbon footprint, I have done enough research to realize that eating meat is not a sustainable practice for our planet.  The amount of energy that goes into one pound of beef is staggering, from the labor to create pastures, to the energy used in the slaughtering process, to the packaging and transport of the meat itself.  I have begun to wean myself off of red meat already, and I feel as though this has been something I haven't thought about enough in the past, which is maybe why I am both physically and mentally ready to do this.  Meat often makes me feel not good in my body, and I often feel downright sick after eating a meal that is full of fatty meat.  Yes it tastes good, but there are other options.  For many people, it comes down to a matter of cost.  Meat provides the most physical energy in the form of mass for your dollar.  I believe that with more planning and a bit more legwork, I can exist without having to burden my planet with a demand for meat.  This is a shift in philosophy, and while it may seem like a drastic change in lifestyle, it is essentially the same as turning off the lights when you aren't using them.