(Click on the image to view the picture clearly)
So what is this Carbon Footprint?
Carbon Footprint is a measure of the total quantity of gaseous emissions of Greenhouse Gases (gases that cause an undesirable and disproportionate heating-up of the earth's atmosphere) emitted by an individual in one year;
- directly (such as by burning fuel), or
- indirectly (through consumption of products and services that have resulted in such emissions in the manufacturing process)
There are three main gases that are classified as 'Greenhouse Gases': Carbon Dioxide, Nitrous Oxide, and Methane. By converting Nitrous Oxide and Methane into equivalent quantities of Carbon Dioxide, one can arrive at a total amount of 'Carbon Dioxide Equivalents' produced per year.
In a nutshell, your Carbon Footprint value is the number of tonnes (1 tonne =1000 kgs) of Carbon Dioxide equivalents you have generated in one year. (courtesy NO2CO2)
Click on this link(Carbon Calculator) to know the amount of Carbon dioxide equivalent you generate/year.
Once you do that, post your results here as a comment to this post. Don't worry if your value comes beyond the expected range given in the site. The idea is to realize our individual impact on the ecosystem and then take collective measures to reduce our respective carbon emissions.
All is not over yet. You and I can still make a tangible difference! :)