03-02-21

Carbon footprint calculator

This page lets readers calculate their environmental impact on the planet and so identify how they can reduce their carbon footprint. The carbon footprint calculator I like most is the Government’s DECC web based calculator shown in the next paragraph. However, it is quite complicated to fill in so I have produced an A5 Carbon Footprint Calculator that you can fill in by pen, which gives almost the same result. (To print this out, set printer to double sided duplex printing, with pages flipped on their short side. Alternatively print page 1 single sided, return it to the paper tray with text uppermost and then print page 2. Repeat with page 3 and 4. You then need a stapler with a 150 mm throat to staple the sheets together).  Before you start the carbon footprint calculator, you should have details of your annual home fuel use, annual car distance traveled in km, flights taken, train and bus travel, money spent on food and the sum of money spent on purchases over the year. Every purchase has a carbon footprint, including hotel stays, meals out, clothing purchases and education, so they need to be included. The booklet guides you on how to fill in the form.

Web Based Carbon Footprint Calculator

If you prefer instead to use the web based calculator, log on to the DECC site below. You can store your data on the site and update it as you progress in reducing your carbon footprint over the years.

Click on Carbon footprint calculator (DECC)

Having filled in my footprint for 2015, my carbon footprint was 2.06 tonne CO2 for home heating, 0.27 tonne for a flight, 1.46 tonne for the car, 0.09 tonne for bus and rail, 2.29 tonne for food and other purchases of eating  out, buying clothes, etc. 4.32 tonnes, totalling 10.5 tonne per annum. As the average for the UK is 12.7 tonne per annum, including imports (DECC), I am below average for the UK.