Reducing the need for using coal, natural gas, gasoline, and oil will help us save more energy or use it more effectively. Additionally, decreasing the use of fossil fuels will cut emissions of carbon dioxide – one of the main contributor to global warming. According to a recent analysis, there are about 40,000 pounds of carbon dioxide that a person releases each year. In case that each can reduce about 2% in emitting greenhouse gas per year, about 7,000 pounds of carbon dioxide will be released in 10 years. How to reduce annual emissions of carbon dioxide? Check out some simple steps below to know more!
Home heating and cooling
- Remember to clean or display air filters as suggested. You will save 5% of the energy when cleaning a dirty air conditioner filter. Importantly, you just release about 75 pounds of carbon dioxide.
- You don’t need to overcool or overheat your rooms, just control your thermostat (higher in summer and lower in winter). Then you just reduce about 500 pounds per year.
Home advancements
- If you live in a cold climate, you should paint your home a dark color, and light color in a warm climate. Don’t forget to plant some trees next to your house. Relying on that, carbon dioxide decrease is about 5,000 pounds per year.
- Keep in mind to isolate your ceilings and walls to save about 25% of home heating costs in order to release about 2,000 pounds each year.
- When you are going to replace your home appliances, you should choose the most energy-efficient ones. Or if you displace your old refrigerator, the amount of carbon dioxide reduction is about 3,000 pounds.
- You should try to install the best energy saving models for your windows to just emit about 10,000 pounds every year.
Home tools
- Remember to turn down the water heater thermostat to 1200F to get hot enough. For every 10 degrees adjustment, just 500 pounds of carbon dioxide are emitted per year.
- Just operate the dishwasher only it has a full load and don’t forget to avail the energy-saving settings to dry dishes. Avoid using heat when drying. By doing this, about 200 pounds are just released.
- Don’t use hot water to wash clothes, just warm or cold to emit 500 pounds.
Invest for small investments
- Use an insulating jacket to wrap the water heater and then about 1,000 pounds of carbon dioxide per year are released.
- Just 1,000 pounds will be emitted when you weatherstrip and caulk around your windows and doors to plug air leaks.
- You should use energy efficient compact fluorescent for the most-used lights in order to just emit about 500 pounds every year.
- If you install low-flow shower heads, not only can you use less water but release about 300 pounds of carbon dioxide.
- Don’t forget to ask your utility company to check whether your house is poorly energy inefficient or insulated. Owing to that, the carbon dioxide emission might be up to thousands of pounds every year.
3R = reduce, reuse, and recycle
- You need to recycle the coolant of the air conditioner from your car whenever you have it serviced. By doing it, you just reduce thousands of pounds of carbon dioxide.
- In case that you want to reduce waste, buy packaged goods minimally at first. Then select recyclable products over disposable ones. Relying on that, the amount of carbon dioxide reduction is 1,000 p
Getting around
- If you want to purchase a car, you need to select one that has good gas mileage. About 2,500 pounds of carbon dioxide will be released per year.
- You also emit 20 pounds whenever possibly bike, carpool, walk or use mass transit.
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