There are numerous challenges facing the country and indeed the world currently concerning environmental and sustainability issues. You may or not be aware of the air quality issue in London where the EU may take the UK to court for not meeting targets set for 2006. Or the systemic fraud within the EU carbon trading system that has led to its recent and extended suspension due to financial security fears. Not to mention the human and natural environment disasters that blighted 2010.
All this can leave you quite frazzled at the prospect of taking any measures upon yourself to reduce your contribution to reducing carbon emissions and enhancing resource efficiency in all aspects of your day to day life. What can you do that will make a dent in the realm of gigantic numbers?
This is exactly where your impact can be greatest. Your everyday decisions no matter how small can make a true and significant difference. A small example that the UK government promoted in the last 12 months; to drive 5 miles less a week. Just 20 miles a week. A small task for 98% of the population I would suggest, and eminently possible. To the average car that is just over 2 litres of fuel a month. However if everyone did this, and there are over 35million registered cars on the road in the UK currently, then the possible fuel saving annually is 750,000,000 litres of fuel (worth nearing £1billion). An incredible figure for what may amount to walking to the shop/pub/friends twice a week.
It is in this vein that I give you some keen, environmentally friendly tips for the home. These are all really based on simple principles and common sense and they do make a noticeable difference.
- 1: Loft insulation - The government have actively promoted this measure over the last few years and the results have been positive. However with 70% of existing houses expected to remain standing in 2050 and national targets to hit, the recommended depth of 270mm will result in £45 and 230kg CO2 saving every year.
- 2: Composting – for those of you that have a garden then composting is a great way of reusing up to one third of the average household waste. If you don’t have access to your own garden look into running an allotment privately or as a community co-operative project.
- 3: Recycling – not just the glass and paper for your council bi-weekly pickup. Recycling your other items such as tvs, computers (hard-drive removed for security) furniture etc through online ad channels such as Gumtree and Freecycle.org instead of simply disposing of them. You may even gather a few extra pounds! Dropping unwanted clothes at charity shops is also a great way to reuse them.
- 4: Water – water efficient appliances that are EU graded are best buys, but measures such as only using them when full, tighten any dripping taps and lagging any external pipes to avoid bursting in cold weather are cheap/free things that you can do.
- 5: Transport – it is possible to bring down your costs and your environmental impact when choosing how to get about. Are trains or buses realistic? If a car is needed but very rarely for longer journeys (school runs etc) then choose an economical model, cheap tax, insurance and fuel!
By Tim Davies | Righttrack’s Environmental Advisor