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• A carbon footprint is the total amount of greenhouse gas emissions produced by an individual human's activity. It is measured in units of carbon dioxide. The "footprint" concept is meant help individuals and organizations conceptualize their impact on global warming.

  Once an individual or organization has calculated their "footprint", they can generate carbon offsets - the mitigation of carbon emissions through alternative projects. For example, projects involving renewable energy (solar, wind), reforestation, methane collection.

  Carbon footprints are usually expressed as tons of CO2 (carbon doixide) or CO2e (carbon dioxide equivalents), emitted per year. There are many carbon footprint calculators on the internet to calculate your personal carbon footprint (many linked to on this page).

• Primary vs. Secondary

  Carbon footprint calculation can be broken down into 2 parts

  1. Primary (or direct) footprint: emissions from fossil fuels consumed directly by the individual or business, for heating, electricity, and transportation
  2. Secondary (indirect) footprint: emissions generated from the whole life cycle of all products and services used or consumed by an entity
  3. Total footprint = primary + secondary

• Carbon Offsets

  1. Carbon offset: purchase/investment in technology/process that reduces greenhouse gases
  2. Business use offsets to meet governmental requirements to reduce greenhouse gas emissions
  3. Reduction purchased is netted against the business's carbon footprint to satisfy compliance targets
  4. Individuals can also buy carbon offsets (investing tree planting or energy efficient technologies, for example)
  5. This reduces global greenhouse gas production without individuals having to adjusting their own behaviors

• Fast Facts

  1. Average US Primary Carbon Footprint: 10 tons a year
  2. Average US Total Per Capita Carbon Footprint: 22 tons a year
  3. Average Global Per capita Carbon Footprint: 6 tons a year

• Related Mahalo Pages

  Climate Change | Greenpeace | Al Gore | Solar Power | Alternative Energy | Wind Power | Kyoto Protocol | Recycling | Greenprint | How to Eat Local Foods | Google Energy Saving Calculator | How to Buy Carbon Credits | Obama Fuel Efficiency Standards

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