From: United Nations Environment Programme
Published June 6, 2008 09:51 AM
"Kick the CO2 Habit" - UNEP Says It May Be Easier Than
You Think
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 have pledged to become "climate
neutral".
One of the reports, a kind of Rough Guide to low carbon living, is entitled
"Kick the Habit: The 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.
New Zealand's Environment Minister Trevor Mallard said: "Sustainability is
at the core of New Zealand's national identity. We take pride in our clean,
green image, and we have set ambitious goals in our efforts to move toward
carbon neutrality."
"Climate change is one of the biggest environmental issues facing the world
today and World Environment Day is an important recognition of today's
global interdependence and the responsibility that we all share for securing
human welfare today and tomorrow."
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:
-Opting for non-electric toothbrush will avoid nearly 48 g of CO2 emissions;
-Heating bread rolls in a toaster versus an oven for 15 minutes saves nearly
170 g of CO2;
-Switching from regular 60-Watt light bulbs to energy-saving ones will
produce four times less greenhouse gas emissions;
-Taking the train rather than the car for a daily office commute of as
little as 8 km will save a big 1.7 Kg of CO2;
-Shutting down your computer and flat screen both during lunch break and
after working hours will cut CO2 emissions generated by these appliances by
one-third; and
-Investing in a water-saving shower head will not only save 10 liters of
water per minute, but will also slash CO2 emissions resulting from a
three-minute hot shower by half.
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.
The joint UNEP and UNWTO report suggests other ways in which aviation and
tourism might contribute to a transition to a low carbon economy.
Apart from cuts in hand luggage and duty free allowances on board, along
with the promotion of coach and rail miles over free air miles, experts
propose other measures. These include:
-Encouraging tour operators to book direct flights rather than ones with
detours or stop-overs.
-Encouraging airlines to cooperative more closely to boost passenger load
factors to 80 per cent - currently the average load factor in the European
Union is 65 per cent.
-A substantial increase in air fares for business travellers to reflect the
extra space they take which could be used for more passengers and thus more
climate-friendly flights.
-Measures to reduce the age of the world's airline fleet. In Sweden, the
average age of a plane is just over ten years whereas in the United States
one-third of the fleet is on average 25 years old. Modern airliners can
reduce the emission per passenger km by up to 30 per cent.
Some airlines are already collaborating with rail companies on bonus
'miles', including Continental Airlines with the US train company Amtrack
and Air France with tgvair, a subsidiary of the French high speed train
company.
Making climate neutrality a reality
The UN Guide underlines how many companies, cities, organizations and indeed
whole countries are going that extra mile by embarking on strategies to
achieve even zero emission businesses, communities and economies.
A great deal of this transition to a Green Economy is being federated and
empowered under the banner of UNEP's Climate Neutral Network (CN Net) which
was launched in February 2008.
New Zealand, one of the CN Net founding participants and host of this year's
World Environment Day, aims to source 90 per cent of electricity from
renewable sources by 2025 and to halve per capita transport emissions by
2040 by using electric cars and biofuels.
The country is also pioneering ways of reducing emissions from livestock in
an economy where half of greenhouse gases come from agriculture.
During the week surrounding World Environment Day, several New Zealand
companies and organizations have followed the government's suit by joining
CN Net.
Meridian Energy, Christchurch International Airport, popular e-commerce
website Trade Me, the New Zealand Wine Company, Warren and Mahoney
Architects and major non-profit association Landcare Research among others.
The idea of climate neutrality is also catching on worldwide. The CN Net
includes participants from across the developing world, such as the
solar-powered Chinese city of Rizhao to the entire Central American nation
of Costa Rica, which is striving to achieve climate neutrality in time for
its 200 years independence celebrations in 2021.
Furthermore, groups as diverse as the British football club Ipswich Town or
the Swiss banking giant Credit Suisse are now aiming to reduce their
greenhouse has emissions and offset the rest.
The football club, for example, worked out that it produced 3,200 tonnes of
CO2 every season and successfully offset this by asking supporters to make
specific pledges to save energy. Credit Suisse, in turn, has been making a
gradual switch to renewable power supplies in order to reduce the
three-quarters of its total emissions coming from energy use to run its
offices.
"It is clear that we are glimpsing a Green Economy emerging across
communities and countries, across the world. Driving this transition is the
sobering science on the impacts of climate change if we fail to act, but
also the abundant economic opportunities if economies become more resource
efficient. Companies and consumers are demanding and acting to realize
change and some countries are starting to deliver it," said Mr Steiner.
"It is now up to governments everywhere to step up to the bar and ensure
that a Green Economy becomes a global, long lasting phenomenon. That level
of ambition will be put to the litmus test in just 18 months when nations
must agree on a new and fully formed climate convention treaty in Copenhagen
in late 2009," said Mr Steiner.
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