UK Government Carbon Calculator

We use 18.25 Tonnes pa as a family of 4. National average: 10.22 tonnes

My Action Plan Thanks for completing your carbon footprint, we have created an action plan that is unique to you and your lifestyle. Your plan includes simple changes that you can implement in order to reduce your carbon emissions. Your CO2 results 18.26 tonnes per year Try to follow as many steps as you can from the plan below and you’ll reduce your carbon footprint in no time at all. Why not look into switching to a Green tariff. There are a number of energy companies that offer tariff options that supply renewable electricity to domestic customers. The nature of the physical supply you receive won't change, but you will be helping to support the demand for more renewable energy supply within the UK. Click here to find out more about green electricity You can track changes in your carbon footprint more accurately if you regularly check the kWh or fuel consumption figures on your energy bills. Compare the kWh figures before and after you act on the recommendations in this action plan, and see the difference it makes to your carbon footprint and your pocket. If your winter heating bills are burning a hole in your pocket try turning down your thermostat by just one degree at a time. Each degree drop can reduce your bill by 10%. We recommend aiming for around 19-20 degrees celsius in your living room and around 18 degrees celsius in your bedroom. Also think about the temperature on your immersion heater if you have one - can you reduce this by a degree or two? Take care to set the timer control so that heating is only on at full temperature when there is somebody at home to benefit from it. If your home is occupied for different times each day of the week, consider getting a 7-day timer so that you can set different programmes depending on when people are at home. Offers are available to help you save money on installing energy saving measures If you have made your home as energy efficient as it can be, why not look into renewable energy technologies (such as solar hot water, or wind turbines). Installing these technologies can help save you money on your energy bills, and reduce your carbon emissions. Solar hot water heating alone can meet up to 30% of your hot water needs. Find out about generating your own energy Find grants for installing renewable energy, please click here Your answer indicates you have insulated your loft. This simple action is already saving you up to 0.9 tonnes of CO2 every year. Find out about other ways of insulating your home How energy efficient is your home? Your answer indicates you have already insulated your walls - by making this investment you are already saving around 0.7 tonnes of CO2 each year. Find out about other ways of insulating your home You indicate you've already installed double glazing - by having double glazing you are already saving half a tonne of CO2 each year. Have you thought about other ways of insulating your home? Click here to find out more You indicate that you've already draught-proofed your home - by insulating your doors and windows you are saving around a tenth of a tonne of CO2 every year. Have you thought about other ways of insulating your home? Click to find out more Consider installing underfloor insulation, unless you have solid floors in contact with the ground. The average 3-bed semi-detached house could reduce its CO2 emissions by around a third of a tonne per year. Click here to find out more about floor insulation You own a microwave. Did you know that microwave cooking can make significant reductions in your energy bills as they are much more energy efficient than conventional ovens. You don't even have to sacrifice your cooking abilities as most microwaves these days allow you to do many of the cooking functions of a normal oven. You own a dishwasher. You can start reducing its CO2 emissions right now, simply make sure that you try to completely fill your dishwasher before each use, and always use the more energy efficient economy settings/cooler wash cycles whenever possible. If you're in the market for a new dishwasher, investing in an Energy Saving Recommended appliance could save around 85kg of CO2 a year. Energy Saving Recommended products are the most efficient in their category, click here to find one. You own a laptop. Congratulations, choosing a laptop instead of a desktop is the wise energy choice. A laptop, on average, consumes around 30% of the power of a desktop, whilst in 'on-mode'. You own a tumble dryer. In drier weather, if you have access to a suitable outside space, hanging your clothes outside rather than using the tumble dryer will reduce your CO2 emissions. They will dry quickly and smell fresh too. If you can't go outside and have space inside, a clothes drying rack is also a great alternative to using the tumble dryer but remember, it's always better to open the window and turn off the heating in the room where the rack is, rather than draping clothes over radiators if the heating is on, as you'll use more energy trying to maintain the room temperature and dry your clothes at the same time. If you are considering replacing your existing clothes drying machine, buying a new Heat Pump type could save up to 28%, 58 kg CO2 per year and will also reduce your electricity bill. Did you know that as much as 15% energy (and CO2) savings can be achieved by turning down the brightness and contrast levels on your TV? The manufacturer's settings are always set for showroom viewing, which is much brighter than needed for an average living room. This can amount to significant savings, particularly for larger flat-screen televisions, and will also improve the picture quality. It will also increase the lifespan of tubes, backlights and plasma elements. If you are looking to buy a new TV, make sure that you buy an IDTV (Integrated Digital TV). It has the capacity to receive digital signals without the need for a set top box - this will save CO2 as you won't be powering a separate device to watch digital TV channels. Click here to find an Energy Saving Recommended IDTV's You don't generally leave charging plugs switched on whilst not charging. Congratulations on realising that external power supplies left on whilst not charging use energy. This energy is wasted energy. Click here to see other energy saving tips you can do today If you have a choice of printers (especially in the office), avoid using a laser printer for draft-quality printouts. From an energy efficiency perspective, the order of preference should be inkjet, dot matrix and then laser printers. Always use the 'eco' function on your print option for drafts, it uses less energy and ink. You say you leave your ICT equipment on standby. Across the UK we waste the equivalent of nearly two power stations' worth of electricity each year simply by leaving our appliances on standby mode. By turning your PC and printer off you'll be doing your part to help tackle climate change. Click here to see other energy saving tips you can do today Whenever possible, walk, bike, car share, or use public transport. Every litre of fuel you save reduces the amount of CO2 emissions that are released into the atmosphere. Reduce your fuel costs by following some simple eco-driving tips. Walking and cycling are the perfect options for both CO2 savings and to improve your health. Reduce your fuel costs by following some simple eco-driving tips Not only is a car sharing a great way to help reduce your CO2 emissions, it's a great way to save you money as well. By sharing the cost of driving one car you save on fuel, the cost of parking and wear and tear on a vehicle. Car sharing with just one person will reduce your emissions by half and with four people this rises to three-quarters. It will also help address congestion. Reduce your fuel costs by following some simple eco-driving tips Road transport accounts for 22% of all UK domestic CO2 emissions (i.e. excluding international aviation and shipping). Using public transport not only helps reduce traffic congestion but helps lower the country's CO2 emissions as well. Have you tried the Transportdirect travel planner to explore your different travel options for your journey? It will also show you the CO2 impact of the different options Keeping your vehicle well tuned will mean it is operating at its most efficient, which means it will use less fuel and save you money. Reduce your fuel costs by following some simple eco-driving tips Under-inflated tyres create more resistance when your car is moving. The engine has to work harder, more fuel is used and more CO2 emitted. Check and adjust your tyres regularly. Correctly inflated tyres are also safer and last longer. Check your car manual for correct tyre pressures. Reduce your fuel costs by following some simple eco-driving tips For more information on tyre pressure see: www.dft.gov.uk/ActOnCO2 Air travel makes a growing contribution to CO2 emissions. Consider the need for a flight and the alternatives to taking a plane. If you do fly then consider offsetting your CO2. If you can, travel by public transport to and from the airport. Rail links are usually quicker and easier than driving, and travelling by rail or bus may also save you money on parking. Air travel currently accounts for 6.3% of the UK total CO2 emissions. The full climate impact of aviation goes beyond the effects of CO2 emissions, although there is still scientific uncertainty about the scale of the impacts of these effects. The climate impacts of non-CO2 emissions from flights (such as water vapour and nitrogen oxides) could mean the total impacts are larger (than those for CO2 alone) by a factor of 2-4 times, due to an effect known as radiative forcing. On average travelling by rail will result in about a third of the CO2 emissions of the equivalent domestic or short-haul flight in Europe. A similar journey for two people in an average-sized car would result in under two thirds of the CO2 emissions compared with flying. Just one long haul return flight can give you the same (or larger) footprint as driving a car for an entire year. For example, if you and a partner flew to Italy instead of Australia for a holiday you could save 7.52 tonnes of CO2. Why not get your family and friends involved too? After all, the more people who reduce their carbon emissions the better it is for our country. Thank you for doing your part! Don't forget to revisit www.direct.gov.uk/actonco2 in six months time to calculate how much carbon you have saved. Please think before printing this page.