Live a sustainable life
A footprint with consequences
21.10.2020
Do you know your carbon footprint? No? For some years now, it has been considered an important measure of environmental pollution and sustainability. We’ll tell you more about him.
According to the Federal Office for the Environment, the average annual temperature in Switzerland has risen by 2 degrees Celsius since measurements began in 1864. This is around twice as high as the global average. Reason enough to talk about their personal CO2-Balance sheet. This is because CO2, i.e. carbon dioxide, is one of the most important gases that amplify the greenhouse effect and thus fuel climate change. According to the WWF, it accounts for around two thirds of global warming. In this context, this is also referred to as the “climate footprint”.
What creates CO2?
CO2 occurs naturally in the atmosphere and also occurs during breathing, for example. It becomes problematic when large amounts of carbon dioxide are released, in particular by burning fossil fuels such as coal, oil, natural gas, petrol, diesel and kerosene. This is how a lot of CO is produced2 in industrial plants, in electricity generation, in heating, in transport and transport. Agriculture and waste incineration also produce greenhouse gases. Slash-and-burn is another major problem, as trees are important stores of carbon dioxide, which is released again when they are burned. Between 1970 and 2004, global CO2-Emissions increased by 80%, according to the German climate protection company Arktik.
What is the CO2-Footprint?
The CO2-Carbon footprint measures how much carbon dioxide is produced by a certain product, but also by certain activities, events and services. For example, you can calculate the impact of buying avocados from Israel, your holidays in Egypt or the production of your leather jacket. But you can also roughly calculate how much your lifestyle leaves behind in terms of greenhouse gases: your living, your heating, your consumption, your mobility.
In some cases, this can be frightening, because a correctly calculated CO2-Footprint always takes into account the carbon dioxide emissions of the entire value chain of a product: the extraction and transport of raw materials, production, transport, storage, use and disposal. This, in turn, shows the complexity of the whole thing. Because, for example, the CO2-The balance of an apple that was imported from New Zealand but sold quickly may even be better than that of a locally produced apple that was stored in the cold for months after harvest.
How can I use my CO2-Calculate footprint?
On the Internet, you can find CO2-Computer from different providers. The WWF, for example, guides you through a questionnaire on the areas of nutrition, mobility, heating, electricity and consumption (www.wwf.ch/de/nachhaltig-leben/footprintrechner). He calculates for you how many tonnes of CO2 you emit per year and how much that is compared to the Swiss average. You can also download the full report as a PDF. You also get CO2-Saving tips.
The illustrative CO2-calculator of bread for the world (www.fussabdruck.de) not only calculates your CO2-Footprint, but your environmental footprint: This is the global area of land and water that would be necessary to make your lifestyle possible in the long term. This compares with the German average. Other computers work in a similar way.
What can I do to reduce CO2 to save money?
There are many ways you can use your CO2-Reducing emissions: You can change your heating type and intensity, your electricity consumption, your mobility habits, your diet, the way you consume and your travel habits if you like. We have the best tips here for you.
Is it possible to2-Compensate the footprint?
If it’s not possible to save money, there’s something else you can do: your CO2-Compensate the footprint. This does not undo emissions. But the money you pay for it can be used to support climate protection projects, promote renewable energies or reforest forests, for example. In other words, greenhouse gases are being reduced elsewhere in the world, which is supposed to “neutralise” the damage caused. Swiss providers include www.myclimate.org and www.swissclimate.ch.
Mobility and myclimate
Mobility works closely with Myclimate. Customers can invest 3 centimes per kilometre travelled. One half of this amount is used to offset CO2-Travel emissions. The other half will go towards accelerating the expansion of Mobility’s electric fleet and accompanying projects.