Before I continue this discussion about creating a personal carbon budget, here are some interesting graphics about the global situation. Remember, the goal is to keep the temperature rise to 2 degrees and the deadline, as determined by scientists is 2050.
I want to do my part! I am going to say right off: as I crunch numbers for my 2019 personal carbon budget, it will not be difficult to cut my carbon emissions by half this year. I just need to reduce my gasoline consumption and reduce my intake of beef and other animal agriculture. Done! I had already reduced it by 25% when I went to a fulltime RV lifestyle that uses energy, so my household energy use is low already.
Do I have to do this? Yes and no. I surely don’t have to reduce my carbon emissions. I don’t think too many people have stopped to consider how they could do this. We are apathetic and don’t want to change. However, the time is here, the time for everyone to stop destroying the planet. It does mean that our lifestyles will change dramatically over time, but that is even more reason to start now, cutting more every year so that we can reach the goal of limiting global warming to 2 degrees by 2050.
Right now, we have the choice to stop contributing to the carbon emissions that are choking us. That may not always be the case. At some point, as more evidence accumulates and we finally get real leaders, we could be facing RATIONING. We won’t get to do Black Friday shopping or reckless amounts of car travel. We won’t get new stuff all the time. The decision will be made for us. I know it sounds crazy, but during my moms’ lifetime (during WWII) she experienced rationing. Even food supplies were short because resources were needed for the war economy. Thanks to a sense of common purpose and unity, every citizen adapted. As for the food shortaghes, according to the above website, “This meant planning meals carefully, being creative with menus, and not wasting food.”
How hard is that? Planning, budgeting, not wasting. If we are forced to do it and we have time, we will adapt to today’s problems as well.
Before I get into more specifics about how I will reduce my carbon footprint by half in 2019, here is my carbon budget showing my estimated numbers for last year and my goals for this year. Last year’s figures are a “best guess”. I can keep records for this year.
| 2018 tons carbon emissions* | 2019 tons carbon emissions | |
| Car (5000 everyday miles) | 3 | 2 |
| Energy use at home and laundromat | 1 | 1 |
| Non-animal agriculture | 1 | 1 |
| Animal agriculture (cheese, chicken, fish) | 1 | 0.5 |
| Buying crap that comes from China and elsewhere? | 1 | 0.1 |
| Travel | ||
| Plane | 0.7 | 0.7 |
| Car/van (5000 miles for road trips) | 6 | 2 |
| Bus and Train travel | 0.5 | 0.3 |
| Other (YMCA pool/spa, restaurants, hotels, movie theaters) | 0.7 | 0.1 |
| Total | 14.9 | 7.7 |
So there it is. Here is what made the biggest difference:
In 2018, I put over 17, 000 miles on my Honda and 2,000 on the van, for a grand total of 19,000 miles. This included my epic trip to Alaska. If I ever want to put on those kinds of miles again, I will have to travel with another person and we can share the carbon costs! This year, I have 10,000 total miles to spend. I tightened up my travel footprint by making a new base in the Pacific Northwest. I plan to explore more in this region instead of making massive, gas-guzzling trips.
Other travel: I have budgeted 1 plane trip and several shorter bus or train trips. Another reason I am in this area: access to a huge transportation hub in Seattle.
Food: I left a small budget for animal agriculture. I will still eat cheese, chicken, and fish. Beef and pork are out, except on rare occasions. I left non-animal agriculture the same; however, I hope to use more locally grown food and maybe get a community garden plot. This has more impact than you might realize because it eliminates transportation costs.
Consuming stuff: I am going to say for now, that if I buy used stuff, it has zero carbon cost. Someone else has already paid that price. Therefore, used stuff is “free” stuff. I can still consume but with minimal impact! Woo hoo! This should make a lot of people happy. I did leave in a small carbon allowance for stuff, which I will use to buy yarn, some fabric, a few pairs of shoes, and undies.
The “Other” category is extremely difficult to quantify at the moment. I will spend time this year finding out just how much carbon it costs to eat out, stay at hotels, and go out to a movie. I don’t do much of this anyway, so I left only a minimal amount in. If it turns out that I need to make a choice in this category, I will spend my allowance on the YMCA (pool and hot tub heating costs).
I am feeling great about cutting my carbon footprint in half this year. The budget is quite “doable”, even for a traveler like me. Likewise, the average American family can easily cut it’s carbon emissions. It is time.
