Paul Martin is an RSPB volunteer who has recently completed a degree in Environmental Studies. Paul is passionate about wildlife, and over the last few years has been concerned about the way his life affects nature. It's not that Paul lived a more extravagant lifestyle than any one of us - but he did want to do something about it.
Since 2008 I have been busy changing my lifestyle to the reduced carbon-emitting lifestyle we must all adopt if we want a future with a stable climate. So, what difference can one man make? I focused on four areas to reduce my carbon emissions: heating, electricity consumption, transport and lifestyle choices. Here's what I did...
Heating and water
The obvious place to start was with the changes that cost the least: loft and cavity wall insulation. According to the Energy Savings Trust, this alone can save one ton of carbon dioxide (CO2) each year. And even better - it reduces your fuel bills. The next measure was to seal up places where air escaped when it wasn't meant to: gaps under skirting boards, for example. Then I replaced the windows with A-rated argon-filled, low-emissivity double glazed glass, keeping heat in and maximising the heat gained indoors when the sun shines. My gas central-heating condensing boiler is 90%+ efficient and it heats my hot water too. Emissions and water consumption are reduced by a reduced flow-head on the shower and a shower timer, and I rarely use the bath. I use the dishwasher on the eco setting, which uses less water and heats the water by electricity rather than by the gas boiler.
The combined effect of these measures has seen my gas consumption reduce by 25% during 2014 compared to the average of the previous five years. That's the equivalent of quarter of a tonne of CO2 saved! Reducing the amount of water I heat, using low-flow gadgets on some taps and hippos in dual-flush toilets has halved my water consumption to just 24 cubic metres in 2014 compared to 50 cubic metres in 2009.
Electricity consumption
Again, starting with the lowest-cost measures, I fitted the entire house with LED bulbs, instantly reducing my electricity consumption by 550 kilowatt hours (kWh), and so saved another 275kg of CO2. An eco-kettle, using a slow-cooker more than the oven, and upgrading some old inefficient appliances with A-rated ones, saved more. The scope here is vast and new appliances are much more efficient, but there is a carbon cost in buying new things so it makes sense only to replace really old inefficient or broken appliances. In 2012, I had 1.8 kWp solar photo-voltaic panels installed on my roof. In the first year these generated 1584 kWh of electricity, and thanks to my power-saving measures, made my property a net exporter to the grid. So, my carbon emissions from electricity consumption are zero, and I reduced 100kg of someone else's! By making my home more efficient and then installing solar power saved 792kg of CO2.
Transport
In 2011 I changed from a petrol-powered car to a hybrid. The petrol car travelled an average of 34 miles on each gallon of fuel and emitted 219 grammes per kilometre (sorry for the mixed imperial-metric!). The hybrid averages 65 mpg and emits 89g/km. Based on my yearly travel of 13,000 km, this saved another 1.7 tonnes of CO2. Quite staggering! And since 2008, I have not taken any flights, eliminating this from my carbon footprint.
Lifestyle
Lifestyle choices are hard to quantify in terms of carbon saved but it is safe to say that some of these choices do save carbon and protect the environment. Food is at the top of the lifestyle list. I have eliminated red meat from my diet, buy from local farm shops where possible, buy organic where possible, only eat fish that is sustainably caught and don’t eat any fish whose populations are under threat. I get my energy supplied by a 100% renewable energy generator, not supporting the fossil-fuelled 'big six'. I’ve moved my savings to an ethical bank that only supports projects that don’t harm the environment and are not socially damaging. I support, through donations, four environmental charities, including The RSPB. I have made my garden a home for nature, removing non-native species of plant, providing nestboxes for birds, bats and hedgehogs, log piles for invertebrates, have planted wildflowers, left areas of garden to go wild and planted 12 native trees that will absorb 120kg of carbon each year. And of course, I live by the three Rs: Reduce, Re-use and Recycle.
The future
There is still more that I can do. I am preparing more space for a further two or maybe four trees. I am saving my cash to double my solar-generating capacity and plan to change the hybrid car for a fully electric one, which would completely remove my travel emissions given that my house generates its own electricity. And I am planning to install a wood burner to further reduce gas consumption. Doubtless, more innovations over the next few years can move us to further reduce carbon emissions.
Adding it all up
The total carbon emissions I have saved and or removed is 3.85 tonnes per year. This is 65% less than the average household emitted in 2008, and far more than the UK's carbon emission reduction target of 20% by 2020 against the 1990 levels under the Kyoto Protocol. I haven't done a lot more than most people could. I'm not living in a mud hut, I still go birding at the weekends, I eat good food, not beans and whey!
Okay, some measures are more expensive than others, but what I have done demonstrates that just implementing the less expensive measures can achieve a 20% reduction. If all 25 million UK households took these steps, a staggering 100 million fewer tonnes of CO2 would enter our atmosphere each year, an aim that I think is very much worth striving for. Because that means the nature we all love will thrive, not die.
So, when someone says what difference can I make?, tell them that we all can. And, if you have done or are planning to do something similar, you’re doing your bit. And if not, what are you waiting for? Starting tomorrow is better than not starting at all. Good luck.
Julian HughesSite Manager, Conwy