CARBON FOOTPRINT ESSAY
As part of the Comenius Eco – Warrior project. We, at the Kingfisher school, decided to look at our own CARBON FOOTPRINTS.
What is a Carbon Footprint?
What do we mean by carbon?
When people talk about carbon emissions and carbon footprints, they usually mean carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.
Carbon dioxide is released when we burn carbon-based fuels. Almost all fuels are carbon-based, including:
· petrol and diesel in our cars
· gas, oil and coal in our homes and power stations
· jet fuel in aeroplanes.
Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas - it traps the sun's heat and keeps the earth warm. Too much CO2 in the air leads to climate change, also known as global warming.
Other greenhouse gases, such as methane, also contribute to climate change. Countries and organisations count these as part of their carbon emissions. But for individuals the most important carbon emission is carbon dioxide.
Some Science about Carbon Emissions:
Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas - it traps the sun's heat and keeps the earth warm. Too much CO2 in the air leads to climate change, also known as global warming.
Other greenhouse gases, such as methane, also contribute to climate change. Countries and organisations count these as part of their carbon emissions. But for individuals the most important carbon emission is carbon dioxide.
What is a carbon footprint?
Your carbon footprint is the amount of carbon dioxide that enters the atmosphere because of the electricity and fuel you use. It's measured in tonnes of carbon dioxide.
Your carbon footprint mostly depends on:
There are many sites on the internet where you can carry out a survey to see how much Carbon is produced by individuals and organisations. We call these sites “ Carbon Footprint Calculator sites:
Here are some examples of sites that can be used to calculate a carbon footprint:
We looked at various Carbon Footprint calculators to see which ones would be the best to use. Some of the Calculators are ever too simple or too long and complicated to use. But we settled for using the following as we thought it was the best because it was easy to understand and use:
http://footprint.wwf.org.uk/questionnaires/show
Some of the pupils in year 11 undertook the activity and it only took on average of 5 minutes only to complete the survey on the WWF web page.
As part of the Comenius Eco – Warrior project. We, at the Kingfisher school, decided to look at our own CARBON FOOTPRINTS.
What is a Carbon Footprint?
What do we mean by carbon?
When people talk about carbon emissions and carbon footprints, they usually mean carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.
Carbon dioxide is released when we burn carbon-based fuels. Almost all fuels are carbon-based, including:
· petrol and diesel in our cars
· gas, oil and coal in our homes and power stations
· jet fuel in aeroplanes.
Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas - it traps the sun's heat and keeps the earth warm. Too much CO2 in the air leads to climate change, also known as global warming.
Other greenhouse gases, such as methane, also contribute to climate change. Countries and organisations count these as part of their carbon emissions. But for individuals the most important carbon emission is carbon dioxide.
Some Science about Carbon Emissions:
Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas - it traps the sun's heat and keeps the earth warm. Too much CO2 in the air leads to climate change, also known as global warming.
Other greenhouse gases, such as methane, also contribute to climate change. Countries and organisations count these as part of their carbon emissions. But for individuals the most important carbon emission is carbon dioxide.
What is a carbon footprint?
Your carbon footprint is the amount of carbon dioxide that enters the atmosphere because of the electricity and fuel you use. It's measured in tonnes of carbon dioxide.
Your carbon footprint mostly depends on:
- how much energy you use to heat your home
- the electronics and appliances you use
- what kind of transport you use day-to-day
- how often you fly.
There are many sites on the internet where you can carry out a survey to see how much Carbon is produced by individuals and organisations. We call these sites “ Carbon Footprint Calculator sites:
Here are some examples of sites that can be used to calculate a carbon footprint:
We looked at various Carbon Footprint calculators to see which ones would be the best to use. Some of the Calculators are ever too simple or too long and complicated to use. But we settled for using the following as we thought it was the best because it was easy to understand and use:
http://footprint.wwf.org.uk/questionnaires/show
Some of the pupils in year 11 undertook the activity and it only took on average of 5 minutes only to complete the survey on the WWF web page.