How to Live a Low-Carbon Life: The Individual's Guide to Stopping Climate Change

ISBN-13: 9781844074266 / Angielski / Miękka / 2007 / 336 str.

Chris Goodall

Opis

Climate change is the greatest challenge facing humanity: drastic reduction of carbon emissions is vital if we are to avoid a catastrophe that devastates large parts of the world. Governments and businesses have been slow to act and individuals now need to take the lead. The Earth can absorb no more than 3 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions each year for every person on the planet if we are to keep temperature and rainfall change within tolerable limits. Yet from cars and holiday flights to household appliances and the food on our plates, Western consumer lifestyles leave each of us responsible for over 12 tonnes of carbon dioxide a year - four times what the Earth can handle. Individual action is essential if we want to avoid climate chaos. How to Live a Low-Carbon Life shows how easy it is to take responsibility, providing the first comprehensive, one-stop reference guide to calculating your CO2 emissions and reducing them to a sustainable 3 tonnes a year.

Spis treści

Introduction: Getting from 12 Tonnes to 3 Tonnes of Carbon Dioxide per Person * The Extraordinary Cheapness of Fossil Fuels * The Scope for Government Action * The Inadequacy of Alternative Means of Reducing Emissions * No One Else Is Doing Much, So You'd Better Do Something Yourself * How Our Lives Generate Emissions and What We Can Do about It * Home Heating * Water Heating and Cooking * Lighting * Household Appliances * Car Travel * Public Transport * Air Travel * Food * Other Indirect Sources of Greenhouse Gas Emissions * Domestic Use of Renewable Energy * Cancelling Out Emissions * Conclusions * Afterword * Appendix: Sources of the Main Averages