CO2 cube

It seems we now live in a world where carbon and CO2 are becoming part of our everyday language, and that's not just because the UN's COP15 is currently happening in Copenhagen. It's about time.

Cutting our carbon footprint is something we've been trying to do for the past few years and we've taken it a lot further as part of our renovation project. But unlike the imprint my foot makes in the sand, CO2 isn't something I can see.

On the other hand (no pun intended), the amount of treated water we've saved is tangible. Not only do we have a level gauge that shows us how much is left, but you can stick your head in the tank and see what we've collected. Coincidentally our latest water bill turned up today - must do a comparison on the last couple of years.

Anyway, back to carbon - I thought I'd work out what CO2 we're saving and try to visualise it. Using standard factors published by the Carbon Trust I've calculated that since we first fired the boiler in late September we've saved approximately 1500 kg of CO2, that's a huge 1.5 tonnes!

By strange coincidence I've just seen that COP15 is doing just that - helping people to visualise a tonne of CO2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjswDzTKV34

I also like this image of a tonne of CO2 produced by a school in the USA - http://www.energyrace.com/commentary/what_does_a_ton_of_co2_look_like/

It's great to think that we're already saving significant amounts of CO2, but I wonder what we're still creating in the areas of the house where we're not as efficient? And as for travel, which I know is a big source of CO2...I think I better do the maths.