United Nations Environment Program (Nairobi)
5 June 2008
press release
Nairobi — Adopting a climate-friendly lifestyle needn't require drastic changes or major sacrifices.
People in the developed world, as well as some rapidly developing countries and cities—from Manchester and Manhattan to Moscow and Mumbai—can start right away to "Kick the C02 Habit", the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) says.
Some quite simple measures can more than halve the daily emissions of an individual, with even bigger cuts possible if sectors like power suppliers and automobile makers as well as aviation and appliance manufacturers contributed more to the greening of global lifestyles.
For example studies indicate that if every airline passenger reduced to below 20Kg the weight of goods and items carried and bought what they needed on arrival at a duty-free lounge, this could cut global greenhouse gas emissions by two million tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) a year.
Other low-carbon lifestyle choices at home and when traveling include:
Backing campaigns to encourage airlines to give free coach and rail miles instead of free air miles in order to promote switches to more environmentally-friendly forms of transport.
Waking up with a traditional wind-up alarm clock rather than the beep of an electronic one—this can save someone almost 48 grams (g) of CO2 each day.
Choosing to dry clothes on a washing line versus a tumble dryer—a daily carbon diet of 2.3 Kg of CO2.
Replacing a 45-minute workout on a treadmill with a jog in a nearby park. This saves nearly 1 Kg of the main greenhouse gas.
These are the findings from two reports launched on World Environment Day by UNEP under the theme "Kick the Habit! Towards a Low Carbon Economy".
The main celebrations of what is a global event are taking place today in New Zealand, one of five countries that has pledged to become "climate neutral".
One of the reports, a kind of Rough Guide to low carbon living, is entitled "Kick the Habit: A UN Guide to Climate Neutrality".
The other, compiled by experts in collaboration with UNEP and the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), is entitled "Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation in the Tourism Sector".
It focuses on the challenges and opportunities facing the world's biggest industry including those linked with flying—both long and short haul.
Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary-General and UNEP Executive Director, said: "Greenhouse gas emissions are continuing to rise across the globe with transport including aviation one of the fastest growing sources. Yet there are countless management, policy and technological opportunities for dramatically changing this trajectory through more intelligent choices by governments, industry and the global public".
"Some of these choices are big—from smart taxes to encourage offshore wind farms as opposed to more coal-fired power stations to national policies that favour cleaner and greener forms of mobility up to ones that promote energy efficiency rather than energy consumption," he said.
"Others are small, such as perhaps thinking about which appliances we buy, how we travel and where we source our energy. But multiplied across the world and acted upon by 6.7 billion people, the public have the power to change the future—have the power to personally and collectively influence economies to 'Kick the CO2 Habit'," he said.
Halving Your Carbon Footprint—Every Little Counts
The UN Guide suggests there are many small 'no regrets' choices that together could reduce daily emissions by someone in Australasia, Europe and North America—the major contributors to global warming historically—from say 38 Kg to 14 Kg.
The suggestions, requiring little or no change in comfort, may also be relevant in part to some developing country countries, cities, sectors and people whose carbon footprint is sharply on the rise.
Just under half of personal emissions come from things under individuals' control, such as how much we drive and fly and heat and power our homes.
Of the remaining 50 per cent, about half comes indirectly from powering the places where we work, 10 per cent more from maintaining infrastructure and government and about 20 per cent during the production of goods that people buy including food.
How did you start your low carbon day? After switching off your climate neutral wind-up clock and pulling on your zero emission-dried clothes, what about brushing your teeth and having breakfast?
Consider the following:
A Green Economy Makes Economic Sense
And what about when you are at work, how energy saving is your home? Heating, cooling and lighting our homes and using household appliances uses up over ten per cent of global energy supplied.
Meanwhile buildings account for about 30 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions—perhaps even more—according to UNEP's Sustainable Building and Construction Initiative.
Yet the average household in a country like the United Kingdom could save around two tonnes of CO2 annually by making its home energy-efficient by for example improving insulation, heating systems and lighting.
Try turning down the thermostat. The Guide suggests that lowering the temperature of a 90 sq m apartment by just a couple of degrees would save six per cent in energy and energy bills.
And there is the fridge. A 150-litre refrigerator with a freezer that is A++ rated emits over 130g less in CO2 than a comparable A- rated one.
The Guide says that householders to companies often underestimate the savings that can be simply and easily achieved.
In one survey of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), nearly one-quarter of those studied believed their business could save only between one and four per cent on energy bills, although the real average figure was 10 per cent.
The UK's Carbon Trust estimates that the widespread adoption of advanced metering by British SMEs would result in annual cost savings of US$600 million and potential carbon savings of over 12 per cent.
Travel and Transport—a Rising Challenge
On the flip side, having a 'carbon binge' can undo a lot of good work, says the Guide. For instance, a return transatlantic flight will make you responsible for the same amount of emissions as running a car for a year.
For frequent fliers—whether jet-setting business people or bargain-hunting holidaymakers—air journeys are by far their biggest contribution to warming the planet.
Over short distances air travel produces around three times more CO2 per passenger than rail, while the industry as a whole accounts for around 2-3 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions.
Coach or bus may be an even better option for intercity travel since some of the new high-speed rail services have an appreciable carbon footprint themselves.
At the same time, technological innovation can help improve the efficiency of transporting people and goods. Airbus, maker of the super-jumbo A380 aircraft, says that the plane uses less than three liters of fuel per passenger per 100 kilometers.
Meanwhile Air New Zealand is planning to fly a plane powered by biofuels made from marine algae.
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