What is Carbon Footprint: Causes and How to Reduce

Carbon is a critical gas that helps sustain life. In everything we do or consume, some amount of carbon is released into the atmosphere. When in excessive amounts, it could lead to Global Warming. So, to help regulate and calculate the amount of carbon being emitted, we use Carbon Footprint.

A footprint is a mark left behind after an activity or event. Just like how you leave your footprint behind every place you've walked; every product, business, country, entity and you (the individual) leave carbon footprints behind every action or activity.

In this article, we will explore everything you need to know about carbon footprint along with some examples.

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What is the Meaning of Carbon Footprint?

By definition, “A carbon footprint is a measure of the impact your activities have on the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) produced through the burning of fossil fuels and is expressed as a weight of CO2 emissions produced in tonnes.”

Carbon footprint is the total greenhouse gases emitted for a product to be produced or for an activity to occur. The Earth uses a lot of carbon in the extraction, production, manufacturing, transportation and usage of goods and services. This carbon emission forms a part of the greenhouse gases.

For an individual, every activity contributes to their carbon footprint. Right from brushing your teeth to travelling to work or using your phone or laptop - there is a certain degree of carbon being released into the atmosphere. This is inevitable but controllable.

Examples of Carbon Footprint for Better Understanding

Let's understand this concept better with the help of some examples.

The Carbon Footprint of Your Car

Roughly 4.6 metric tonnes (4,600kgs) of CO2 is emitted per year when using the car.
5.6 tonnes (5,600kgs) of CO2 are released during manufacture alone.

Carbon emissions start from the production and manufacturing of the car. The energy required to develop, assemble and transport the car all emits carbon into the atmosphere as well. Then, once you start using the vehicle, there are emissions through the exhaust, which flow directly into the atmosphere.

The Carbon Footprint of a Water Bottle

The carbon footprint of a single use 500ml plastic bottle of water is around 82.9g.
That of a glass bottle is 107.7g.
If you reuse these bottles, the carbon footprint is just 8g.

The Carbon Footprint of Your Clothes

The global fashion industry releases an estimated 1.2 billion tonnes (1,200 billion kgs) of carbon dioxide annually.

This number will only increase as our consumption increases. Carbon emissions occur right from the production of the fabric to the transportation of the final product to your home.

The Carbon Footprint of a Sandwich

That is, 800g of CO2eq.

The calculation starts from the growth and production of the bread (and every individual ingredient used in the sandwich) to their consumption.

Carbon Emissions of an Oil Company

In 2022, the CO2 eq. of the biggest oil company in the world was 137.2 million metric tonnes.

On a much larger scale, the carbon footprint of an oil company, for example, is a hundred times this amount.

What are Some Examples of Carbon Emission Sources?

Most carbon emissions come from burning fossil fuels for basic human needs such as electricity, transportation, etc. Other sources of carbon emissions are:

Natural Sources: Such as those emissions from oceans, volcanic eruptions, plants and organic matter decomposition. However, these gases are naturally offset by sinks like photosynthesis, the creation of peat and ocean absorption.
Fuel Combustion: These are emissions from the burning of fossil fuels. This fuel is converted to heat and electrical energy that is used across industries and in household settings.
Deforestation and Land Use Changes: When land is converted from forest to human settlements, the cutting down or burning of trees results in carbon gas emission.

In developed countries, transportation and household energy use make up the largest component of an individual’s carbon footprint. Such emissions are included as part of an individual’s 'primary' carbon footprint, representing the emissions over which an individual has direct control.

The remainder of an individual’s carbon footprint is called the 'secondary' carbon footprint, representing carbon emissions associated with the consumption of goods and services.

What are the Causes of Carbon Footprint?

Identifying the sources of carbon footprint helps us determine the causes for the same. Some of the major causes of carbon footprint include:

Transportation
Electricity Production
Household Energy
Deforestation
Industrial Practices
Agriculture and Farm Mechanization
Cement Production
Digital Carbon Footprint
Food Consumption (especially red meat products).

Important Data About the Global Carbon Footprint

How are Carbon Emissions Dangerous?

Carbon emissions are dangerous on a global and personal level. When in high measures, they can cause severe negative effects to the environment, which in turn affect human health and the economy.

One of the most serious repercussions of high carbon emissions in the atmosphere is Global Warming and Climate Change. This leads to health issues related to respiratory and cardiovascular functioning.

Carbon dioxide is a contributing greenhouse gas. That, and the average global temperature are directly proportional and has seen a steady increase over the past decade. The major cause for this is human activity.

We are part of an ecosystem where everything is interconnected. Each of our actions enable a cause-effect chain that ultimately impacts the planet and our future on it. High levels of carbon emissions threaten the livelihood of our planet, animals, humans, and ultimately, life as we know it.

What are the Factors that Contribute to Carbon Footprint?

Many activities we engage in produce a carbon footprint. What we eat, the vehicles we drive, the number of individuals in a household, the electronics we use, etc., all contribute to our carbon footprint.

All in all, there are six major factors divided into three groups that drive CO₂ emissions. They are:

Core Factor: The core factor of CO₂ emissions is Economic Growth.
Compound Factors: Under compound factors, we have Industrialization and Urbanization.
Specific Factors: Specific factors include Technology Progress, Foreign Direct Investment and Energy Consumption.

What are the Effects of Carbon Emissions?

Globally, high carbon emissions in the atmosphere lead to rising temperatures as they contribute to greenhouse gases. This leads to:

Global warming
Climate change and its associated extreme weather events
Disturbance of animal habitats
Urban air pollution
Toxic acid rain
Coastal and ocean acidification

These issues negatively affect food production (crop and animal-based), which also in turn affect the economy.

Carbon emissions also affect us individually by causing health issues. They give rise to diseases and illnesses such as:

Heat-related illnesses
Respiratory issues
Increased vector-borne diseases
Headaches
Weak eyesight
Nervousness
Cardiovascular disorders

How to Calculate Carbon Footprint?

Calculating your carbon footprint is easy. You can do this by downloading the Digit App and navigating to our Carbon Footprint Calculator.

A Carbon Footprint Calculator helps to understand your own carbon footprint, the major causes and suggests methods and tips you can adopt to lower it. Through our Carbon Footprint calculator, we analyse three important parameters:

Step 1

What type of house you live in?

Step 2

What is the annual distance you travel?

Step 3

What type of diet you follow?

After you've entered all your information, you can view your carbon footprint. You can also see your carbon offset (ie; the number of trees it takes to offset your annual footprint) and tips on how to decrease your carbon footprint.

Read more about our article on How is Carbon Footprint Calculated?

How To Reduce My Carbon Footprint?

Through improving energy efficiency, changing lifestyles and purchasing habits, you can help reduce your carbon footprint.

Address the Root Causes: After calculating your carbon footprint, you can see your biggest contributors. This can help you understand where you need to cut back to reduce your carbon footprint. For e.g., if you live close to work but still use your bike or car to travel, you can try walking, cycling, public transport or carpooling instead. This can effectively bring down your carbon footprint.
Recycling: Recycling items at your home is a great place to start. For e.g., using the same clothes often is a small but efficient step that can reduce your overall footprint.
Carbon Offsets: It is an action intended to compensate for the emission of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere because of industrial or other human activity. Planting trees, building wind farms, solar power plants, etc., is an investment in a carbon-reducing activity or technology to compensate for their carbon footprint.
Energy Conservation: Reduce energy demand by using it more efficiently. Practice transitioning to more renewable sources of energy (as baby steps, you can use natural light instead of electricity at home, set up rainwater harvesting systems, etc.), or use innovative technology that prioritizes lower carbon emissions.
Efficient Transport: Since a major source of carbon emission comes from transportation, an easy way to reduce this is by using public transport, carpooling, using eco-friendly modes of transport and flying less.
Act and Vote: Carbon Footprint and Climate Change are global problems that affect everyone regardless of background. Big companies are responsible for over 75% of toxic emissions. By voting for the right people who are willing to act on curbing climate change and take active steps to advance to an eco-friendly mode of living, you can significantly help tackle this problem.

As much as individual change is essential, one must realise that the real ecological problems are systematic at a corporate level. Big companies use excessive amounts of fossil fuels to run, which inherently leads to high levels of carbon emissions into the atmosphere. And we are directly or indirectly a part of these big companies as customers.

By making active consumer choices (like better insulating your home, using renewable sources of energy, etc.), you can help create demand for a brighter and sustainable future. Because individual and systemic change are two sides of the same coin.

FAQs About Carbon Footprint

All

What is the global target of carbon emissions?

The worldwide target of carbon footprint emission is 2 metric tons of CO2 eq. This is because the amount of carbon emission has increased drastically over the last century that the Earth is getting warmer than it has been over the past 400,000 years.

What is the global target of Greenhouse Gas (GHGs) emissions?

The global target for GHG emissions is Net Zero. This target came through The Paris Agreement, adopted by 196 Parties at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP21) in Paris, France. This international agreement on climate change demands a 45% decrease in global greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and reaching net zero by 2050 to limit global warming to 1.5 °C.

What is the carbon footprint of a cup of coffee?

From seed to cup, every stage of coffee has a carbon trial. If you are making one cup of coffee at home with milk, approximately 71g of CO2 eq. is generated.

Why is a high carbon footprint bad for the environment?

A high carbon footprint results in higher levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere which results in faster global warming. This then leads to climate change, urban air pollution, toxic acid rain, etc.

What are some examples of carbon reduction technology?

Some examples of carbon reduction technologies include:

Wind Turbines
Hydropower Plants
Solar Panels
Carbon Capture and Sequestration - a machine used to capture CO₂ from its source and store it in a different location.
Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) - it captures CO₂ at drilling rigs and injects it into an oil reservoir for long-term storage.

What is an example of a negative carbon footprint?

A negative carbon footprint, or carbon-negative, means removing more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than is emitted. Bhutan is an example of a carbon-negative country. It stores more carbon dioxide than it emits because trees cover more than 70% of the country.

What is the cause of carbon footprint in India?

The major contributors to India’s carbon footprint are the electric power sector and the agricultural sector. The sheer volume of CO2 emitted by coal-fired power plants makes India’s electric power sector the largest source of GHGs. The second-largest contributor is the agriculture sector, which produces enormous amounts of methane (CH4) from rice paddies and cattle.

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