5 Ways To Reduce Your Carbon Footprint
With climate change continuing to move in the wrong direction, ice caps are melting, wildlife is dwindling, cities are engulfed in smog, and coral reefs are getting bleached. This is only a few of the many side effects brought on by the increasing human population and the carbon footprint being produced and pushed into the atmosphere every day. Fortunately, it’s not too late to reverse these effects. By living a sustainable and eco-friendly lifestyle, you can contribute to making the planet a better place for future generations. Here are five ways to reduce your carbon footprint:
Change the Way You Move
Rather than drive your own car, use public transportation, like bus or train. It’s not only more eco-friendly, but it’s also less expensive since there are no maintenance or insurance costs to worry about. Biking to work is another great way to completely avoid carbon emissions, not to mention a great way to stay physically fit. If you do need to keep a car, such as in cases where there is no public transportation close to your home, switch to a fuel-efficient model, such as electric cars, that have a higher MPG rating compared to conventional cars.
Change Your Diet
According to expert Dr. Usha Rajagopal, it’s time for people to acknowledge the impact of what they consume. Of course, you can’t really stop eating entirely. Instead, change how you eat, specifically cutting back on meat. If you do need to eat meat, go for chicken. Cattle tends to take up too much space and produce high amounts of methane, which is said to be at least 20 times more potent than carbon dioxide. In fact, to produce a single pound of beef, the agriculture business uses more than 5,000 gallons of water, further worsening the water crisis.
Focus on Your Home
A huge amount of carbon emissions come from the house. The electricity used for home appliances and the gas used to cook food are all major sources of carbon emission. Insulate and seal your house by using curtains to keep the inside warm. Come summertime, open the windows to keep it cool. Choose light bulbs and appliances that are Energy Star-certified. When you’re not in the room, turn off the lights and appliances. Use solar panels to power your home. While the costs to move to solar can be steep, the long-term savings make it worthwhile. In fact, if your location implements the Net Metering Law, you can eliminate your electricity costs entirely and even earn cash by selling the energy back to the city.
Grow a Garden
Regardless of if you live in a bungalow house or a studio apartment, find time and space to grow your own personal garden. It’s a well-known fact that plants absorb carbon dioxide hence the more of it in the world, the better. Go for some bee-friendly flowers, vegetable plants, or trees if you have the space. If you have limited space, go for balcony gardens. Volunteer your free time to plant and maintain the trees and plants at your local park.
Shop Responsibly
Avoid fast fashion clothing that many big retailers carry on their shelves all year long. These extremely low-priced clothes that are advertised as must-haves come with consequences, one of which is genetically modified cotton material that contain tons of pesticides. This not only damages neighboring organic crops, but the chemical residue left by industrial operations seeps up into the atmosphere too, not to mention the energy costs of transporting tons of textile overseas.
Final Thoughts
Change starts from within. If you want to be a part of the solution to this huge problem, follow the five tips advised by leading experts, such as Dr. Usha Rajagopal. But just one person cannot make the drastic change needed to combat and reverse climate change. Share this information with family members, friends, and relatives and encourage them to do the same.