In the previous article, we discussed how to in order to modify your eating habits in order to reduce your carbon footprint. In this entry, we’ll discuss how you can change your use of transportation and electricity to the same effect.
Goal Two: Reduce the carbon emissions created by transportation
Use your bicycle or public transportation to get to work
Transportation is a major source of carbon emissions worldwide, though the percentage varies greatly by country or continent. In the United States, for example, transportation and the transport industry are now the largest source of carbon emissions, while emissions from the transport sector in the EU comprise 27% of the block’s total emissions.
Of that 27%, road transport constitutes the largest source of carbon emissions by far (72.1%), with maritime transport (13.6%) and aviation (13.3%) coming in at second and third place. 60% of road transportation’s emissions come from cars, while 18.9% comes from heavy duty trucks and busses. In total, 40% of the transport industry’s carbon emissions in the EU come from car use.
It’s clear that limiting your car use will have the biggest impact on this part of your carbon footprint. Here are a few ways to do this:
- Walking or biking is obviously the eco-friendliest alternative to driving. If your city has a bike-sharing program, this can be a great and convenient option!
- If your city isn’t designed for bikes or your trips are too long, take public transport whenever possible.
That said, some people are almost wholly dependent on a car or have to use a car once and a while. In that case,
- If you must own a car, buying an electric car is a low-carbon alternative to owning a conventional car. If you can’t buy an electric car, try to buy a hybrid.
- If you need to use a car every once and a while, go for ride-sharing or car-sharing options. Fewer cars on the street mean that local politicians will eventually be forced to make their cities more bike and pedestrian-friendly.
Whenever possible, travel by train instead of by airplane
Carbon emissions from aviation have drastically increased in worldwide - from 2013 to 2020, carbon emissions from aviation increased by 33%. In Europe, in particular, carbon emissions from the airline industry have exploded over the past fifteen years due to the liberalization of the airline industry and the corresponding growth of low budget airlines like EasyJet and RyanAir. As we’ve seen, carbon emissions from aviation comprise 13.3% of the transport industry’s total emissions in the European Union - the industry’s fourth-largest source of emissions.
The easy solution is to take the train instead of an airplane. Though the length of your trip will increase, its environmental impact is much lower.
So, you can follow these tips to reduce the carbon emissions caused by transport. In the following weeks, we'll publish Part Three of this series!
Further Reading
https://www.c2es.org/content/reducing-your-transportation-footprint/