Transition carbon calculator

For Transition Towns, 10:10, & London Low Carbon Communities Network
To calculate your individual carbon footprint
Version 1 November 2009 by Edward Hill of Transition Westcombe
Comments & suggestions to edhill (at) glartists.com
In the UK the average personal, non-work carbon footprint which is under our direct control through our consumption is about 12800 Kgs of per year (G)
The 10:10 campaign is to achieve a 10% cut in carbon emissions by the end of 2010. This requires a personal reduction of about 1280 Kgs per year
The UK Low Carbon Transition Plan plots how the UK will meet the 34% cut in emissions on 1990 levels by 2020. This requires a personal reduction of about 4300 Kgs per year
The London Plan calls for 60% cuts in by 2025, a personal reduction of 7680 Kgs / yr
The UK government has signed up to 80% cut in emissions by 2050. It has been calculated we need to reduce to a personal carbon footprint of about 2000 Kgs / yr (RS)
Converting your Electricity, Gas, Water, Petrol, Bus & Train, Air Travel, Food & Consumables into Kgs . 
Read footnotes for extra guidance
Electricity (1), units are kWh/year/person, multiply your total by 0.6 to get your total in Kgs 
Gas (1), units are kWh/year/person, multiply by 0.2 to get your total in Kgs 
Water (2), unmetred, add 300 Kgs 
Petrol (3), units are litres/year/person, and multiply your total by 2.3 for your total in Kgs 
Bus & Train, units are miles/year, and multiply by 0.1 for your total in Kgs 
Air Travel (4), units are miles/year, and multiply by 0.5 for your total in Kgs 
Food (5), mixed diet, add 2530 Kgs 
Consumables (6), average consumption, add 3400 Kgs 
Add up all the above for your Total Individual Carbon Footprint in Kgs 
Offset your total carbon footprint minus a personal allowance of 2000 Kgs by supporting a tree planting organization such as the Woodland Trust. Pay £8.00 per 1000 Kgs 
Footnotes for the Transition Carbon Calculator:
(1) Enter your total per person, so divide your house’s electricity / gas annual amount in kilowatt hours by the number of people in the house.
(2) If your water is metred, then enter your total per person per year, & multiply by 3.6
If your water is not metered, enter average figure of 300 Kgs per person.
(3) To obtain your car’s litre/year figure from your milometer, divide the total year’s mileage by the Miles Per Gallon rating of your car and multiply by 4.5.
If your car runs on diesel add 10% to the figure that you reach
(4) Air Miles calculator for most destinations can be found on www.nef.org.uk
This air miles figure includes the extra effect of leaving NOx and soot in the high atmosphere. For long-haul flights reduce the multiplier to 0.3
(5) Food: It’s difficult to calculate the emissions caused by growing, transporting and selling the food that each of us buys. The ‘mixed diet’ is an average UK diet of 38% animal-based food. If you eat mostly vegetarian, unprocessed, small appetite, no air freight, seasonal produce then enter 1000. If you eat lot of red meat or hard cheese, highly processed food, and out-of-season or air-freighted goods enter 4000. Able to subtract? See carbon savings below
(6) Consumables / goods. This is an average figure for Kgs . It includes:
Home newspapers/books/paper average 200 (range from 0 to 790), Clothes/shoes/fabrics average 330 (range 0 to 1300)
Gadgets/ electronic & electrical appliances average 930 (range 0 to 2900),
Other shopping average 1940 (range 0 to 7000)
An above average figure is 5 tons 
A below average figure is 2.4 tons 
A much below average figure is 1.4 tonnes 
(6) Miscellaneous.
For slow ferries multiply km travelled by 0.1, for fast ferries by 0.5, and for liners by 0.7
(7) Offset by tree planting. Each person in theory can safely produce 2000 Kgs of . While you are reducing your carbon footprint towards that you can contribute funds to tree planting organizations such as the Woodland Trust . For most impact choose organisations where the trees are maintained and looked after by local volunteers from the community such as the Green Light Trust. The government’s Low Carbon Transition Plan states that if 10,000 hectares of new woodland are planted every year, the resulting new trees will lock away a staggering 50 million tonnes of carbon by 2050, making a very real contribution to the U.K’s carbon reduction targets.
An Excel 12.1.9 spreadsheet version of this Transition Carbon Calculator is also available by emailing edhill (at) glartists.com
=== Average carbon savings chart ===
For an average 3-bedroom semi-detached house with gas central heating
==== Electricity saving measures ====
1. Only boil the water your need. Annual savings of 100 Kgs , Annual cash saving £25.00
2. Only use small screen TV. Annual savings of 50 Kgs , Annual cash saving £15
3. Only use LED lights (20Kg each) or fluorescent instead of halogen. Annual savings of 100 Kgs . Annual cash savings of £37
4. Get a meter to show actual energy use and monitor it. Annual savings of 100 Kgs . Annual cash savings of £25
5. Only use a dishwasher and washing machine when full. Annual savings of 100 Kgs . Annual cash savings of £25
6. Don’t use a tumble drier. Annual savings of 100 Kgs . Annual cash savings of £25
7. Get rid of the freezer and get A+ or A++ fridge-freezer. Annual savings of 140 Kgs . Annual cash savings of £35
8. Turn off appliances rather than use standby. Annual savings of 100 Kgs . Annual cash savings of £25
9. 4 Energy Saving Lamps. Annual savings of 100 Kgs . Annual cash saving £15
10. Install Solar PV panels. Annual savings of 640 Kgs . Capital cost £7800. Saving per year £510. Payback 16 years.
==== Gas saving measures ====
1. Loft insulation (new) subsidized. Annual savings of 1700 Kgs . Cost £230. Saving per year £200. Payback 1 year.
2. Loft insulation top up subsidized. Annual savings of 400 Kgs . Cost £240. Saving per year £55. Payback 4 yrs
3. Floor insulation. Annual savings of 340 Kgs . Cost £100. Saving per year £45. Payback 2 years
4. Cavity wall insulation, subsidized. Annual savings of 1050 Kgs . Cost £260. Saving per year £145. Payback 2 years
5. Solid wall insulation with internal insulation. Annual savings of 2400 Kgs . Cost £5500 - £8500. Saving per year £380. Payback 14-22 years
6. Solid wall insulation with external insulation. Annual savings of 2500 Kgs . Cost £10500-£14500. Saving per year £400. Payback 26-36 years
7. Double glazing if you don’t have it. Annual savings 720 Kgs . Cost £6000. Saving per year £135. Payback 45 years.
8. Solar thermal hot water. Annual saving 390 Kgs . Cost £5900. Saving per year £560. Payback 10 years
9. Draughtproofiing. Annual saving 150 Kgs . Cost £75. Saving per year £45. Payback 2 years
10. Full temperature controls on boiler and radiators. Annual savings 840 Kgs . Cost £200. Saving per year £65. Payback 3 years
11. Buy a wood-burning stove/boiler for heating & hot water. Annual savings 6000 Kgs , Cost £9000, Saving per year £600, Payback 15 years
12. Buy a wood-burning stove. Annual saving 600 Kgs . Cost £3000. Saving per year £200. Payback 15 years.
13. Reduce your heating thermostat temperature by 1 degree. Annual saving 200 Kgs , Saving per year £55
14. Heat one less room. Annual savings 100 Kgs 
15. Low pressure showers, not baths. Annual saving 100 Kgs 
16. Hot water tank insulation. Annual savings 150 Kgs 
17. Install ground source heat pump. Annual savings 0 Kgs . Cost £7000-13000. Saving per year £190. Payback 36 years
18. New boiler if yours is over 10 years old. Annual savings 810 Kgs . Cost £2000. Saving per year £110.
==== Water saving measures ====
1. Store and use rainwater for watering garden, washing car and for toilets. Annual savings 100 Kgs 
2. Use aerated taps and shower, low pressure shower rather than bath or power shower. Sometimes use soap, a basin of water and a sponge, not a shower. Be careful with water when washing up. Annual savings 100 Kgs 
3. Buy ultra-low water use cisterns, dishwasher, & washing machine, and recycle old ones Annual savings 100 Kgs 
4. Install and monitor a water meter. Annual savings 100 Kgs 
==== Car saving measures ====
1. Cut your annual mileage in half. Annual savings 700 Kgs 
2. Sell the second car. Annual savings 700 Kgs 
3. Buy a new car with emissions in bands A or B, scrap old one. Annual saving 500 Kgs 
4. Join a car club, or set up an effective local car-sharing scheme. Annual savings 400 Kgs 
5. Share car to work. Annual savings 300 Kgs 
6. Go on eco-driving course, check tyre pressures each month. Annual savings 200 Kgs 
7. Don’t use car for shopping. Buy online and have delivered. Annual savings 100 Kgs 
8. Work from home once a week, rather than commuting by car. Annual savings 100 Kgs 
9. Keep tyres correctly inflated. Annual savings 100 Kgs 
10. Replace car with an electric car. Annual saving 950 Kgs 
==== Public transport saving measures ====
1. Cycle more. Annual savings of 300 Kgs 
2. Use coaches rather than train. Annual savings of 100 Kgs 
==== Air travel saving measures ====
1. Reduce by one round trip flight of 1460 miles each year (e.g. to Venice in Italy) Annual saving of 700 Kgs 
2. Reduce by one round trip flight of 6880 miles each yeat (New York) Annual saving of 3290 Kgs 
==== Food saving measures ====
1. Change to an almost entirely vegetarian diet, using mostly unprocessed wholefoods. Annual savings 500 Kgs 
2. Don’t buy processed food or ready meals. Annual savings 200 Kgs 
3. Buy more carefully and never throw food away. Annual savings 200 Kgs . Saving per year £400
4. Grow all your own fruit and vegetables for July, August, September. Annual savings 100 Kgs 
5. Eating 100% organic. Annual saving 700 Kgs 
6. Switch from lamb and beef to chicken. Annual savings 600 Kgs 
7. Switch from lamb and beef to pork. Annual savings 300 Kgs 
8. Go Vvegan 3 days a week. Annual savings 500 Kgs 
9. Compost all your food waste. Annual savings 200 Kgs 
==== Paper saving measures ====
1. Only buy newspapers, magazines, books, toilet paper & copier paper made from recycled materials. Annual savings 100 Kgs 
2. Block direct mail, choose electronic bills and statements, buy secondhand books and share papers. Annual savings 100 Kgs 
==== Clothes savings measures ====
1. Buy 50% secondhand clothes Annual saving 300 Kgs 
2. Buy only man-made fibres. Annual savings 200 Kgs 
3. Buy new fabrics made from bamboo, hemp or other cotton substitutes. Annual savings 100 Kgs 
==== Consumer electronics saving measures ====
1. Buy secondhand mobile phones and ensure that 3 of your electronic devices are recycled Annual savings 300 Kgs 
2. Keep your phones, TV’s, computers, DVD players, games machines for one year longer than you would have. Annual savings 200 Kgs 
3. Switch from a desktop computer to a laptop at home, and recycle the desktop. Annual savings 100 Kgs 
=== Sources ===
Information for the Transition & 10:10 Carbon Calculator and Carbon Savings Chart is drawn from the following sources. Please contact me on edhill@glartists.com with comments or with any new information. I can send you the original version with tables showing the details of where my sources are. There will be a new version as more information becomes available.
1. Act On : AOC
2. BBC. www.bbc.co.uk/bloom/actions/electriccars BBC
3. BRE Changing Spaces (benchmarks) BRE
4. The Carbon Independent Footprint Calculator : IFC
5. The Carbon Trust : T
6. DECC Low Carbon Buildings Programme : DECC
7. Felicity Carus, Guardian Green Your Home, Nov 09 : FC
8. DEFRA : DEFRA
9. Eat Low Carbon : EL
10. The Energy Savings Trust : Figures are for semi-detached / end of terrace gas-heated house, with professionally installed costs EST
11. The Environmental Change Institute : ECE
12. Energy Saving Community ESC
13. Chris Goodall : CG
14. The Guardian : G
15. iGenSolar Commercial Solar Installers IGS
16. L.B. Lewisham Sustainable Development Select Committee .Local Warming: Increasing Home Insulation In Lewisham. Sept 2009: LBL
17. George Marshall’s Carbon Detox : GM
18. Donnachadh McCarthy DM
19. The National Energy Foundation : Based on DEFRA figures. NEF
20. Parity Projects 2009 figures PP
21. Stockholm Environment Institute : SEI
22. Dr Robin Stott. Carbon calculator monograph 2005 : RS
23. United Utilities : UU
24. US Nature Conservancy : USNC
An Excel 12.1.9 spreadsheet version of this Transition Carbon Calculator is also available by emailing edhill (at) glartists.com
=== Related topics ===
*Reduce your carbon footprint - personal options