Check Your Neighbor's Carbon Footprint at Urban EcoMap

Here's a new device that will allow you to check on the carbon footprint of your neighbor. It's called the Urban EcoMap and it is an online tracking tool that will allow anyone to check the size of anyone else's carbon footprint.

The map tracks the emissions from waste, transportation and energy based on zip code. At the moment it is only operational in San Francisco, but Amsterdam and Seoul will get their carbon footprint maps later this year. Other cities will be sure to follow after that.

When you visit the site you are given a lot of figures of how many pounds of carbon emissions are being released based on zip code. You are invited to check out each zip code in the San Francisco. The site is also filled with advice on how to reduce your carbon footprint. It also explains where San Francisco sits in terms of the size of the carbon footprint of the entire city and the goal size that everyone should be striving to meet.

Check out the Urban EcoMap site for a more clear picture of the idea behind making everyone aware of not only their carbon footprint but also that of their neighbor.

New Carbon Reporting Guide

PricewaterhouseCoopers has launched a best practices guide to help companies report their carbon emissions ahead of the requirements that will come with the government's new Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC) legislation.

Next year around 5,000 UK businesses will be required to report their carbon footprint and will enter into an emissions cap-and-trade scheme.

The guide takes companies through a possible scenario with a fake company that explains how the report might be properly compiled. It gives a format that other companies might like to follow as well as an example of a carbon data summary that could be included in an annual report.

Quickly picking up on the carbon reporting practices will help all companies bring forward their emission reduction strategies.

Ecobutton Can Lower Your Computer's Carbon Footprint

Here's another device designed to both save money on your energy bill as well as reduce your carbon footprint.

If you're like me you leave you computer powered up when you leave work for the day. I let my work computer go into sleep mode with all of my apps still up and running. The computer will remain fully powered until it eventually goes into sleep mode.

Now there is a new product that can be attached to your computer via a USB cable, called the ecobutton, that you can press when you are not using your computer for any period of time. If you're going to make coffee, are on the phone or heading off for lunch, you can simply press the ecobutton and your computer is immediately switched to energy saving 'ecomode'.

After the computer has been put into 'ecomode' you simply have to press the ecobutton for the computer to be returned to the point where you left off.

As a bonus, each time you send your computer into 'ecomode' the ecobutton software records how much power and money you have saved by using the device. Instantly, you can see just how much your carbon footprint is being reduced.

More devices to help reduce your carbon footprint:

Carbon Hero
Fuel Efficiency Advisor

Fuel Efficiency Adviser To Reduce Your Car's Carbon Footprint

A new device that can easily be installed onto your car's dashboard is available from Fuel Efficiency Centers. Called the Fuel Efficiency Adviser, the device plugs into the OBDII port under the dash and it immediately goes to work analyzing fuel consumption while you drive.

The digital readout can display up to four readings at one time including

• Fuel Economy
• Fuel Rate
• Digital Speedometer
  Adjustable for tire size or gearing changes
• Tachometer (RPM)
• Manifold Pressure
  
• Battery Voltage
• Coolant Temp.
• Intake Air Temp.
• Engine Load
• Ignition Timing
• Throttle Position
• Open/Closed Loop

allowing you to see what the cost of your current trip is, the cost of all your trips today, the miles per gallon you have achieved and the average miles per gallon you have achieved.

This device can help reduce your carbon footprint by helping you diagnose when your car is running inefficiently so you can immediately address them. According to the website you can reduce your fuel consumption by as much as 33% following the information from the Fuel Efficiency Adviser and, consequently, can reduce the excess carbon that would be released by the car.

Fuel Efficiency Centers also advises drivers through its Smart Driving program how following eight simple driving techniques will both save money and reduce their carbon footprint.

1. Accelerate Smoothly
2. Brake Easy
3. Observe Traffic Ahead
4. Coast Whenever You Can
5. Maintain Constant Speed
6. Cruise Control On Flat Surfaces
7. Avoid Idling and Long Lines
8. Control Highway Speeds

Biodegradable Clothes Hanger to Reduce Carbon Footprint

Here's an innovative new product that introduces a great concept for helping to reduce your carbon footprint.

A new biodegradable clothes hanger has been created by Canadian company E-Hanger, made from recycled paper and using ink that is 100% eco-ink vegetable oil in its printed designs. These hangers are being distributed to dry cleaners, retail stores, hotels, and fitness centers completely free of charge. This cost free distribution is made possible due to the advertising dollars that are brought in from companies who market themselves on the hangers.

Such hangers will be able to replace tens of thousands of wire hangers which are dumped into Canadian landfills every year. They also replace plastic hangers which are not completely recyclable.

The replacement hangers will also help to reduce the carbon footprint of dry-cleaners and laundries by eliminating their large contribution of wire hangers to landfills. That carbon footprint reduction will then pass further on to consumers because they will no longer be using non-recyclable clothes hangers.

There's more to be found out about E-Hanger which will hold the dominant distribution rights of its 100% biodegradable clothing hangers. Providing companies with an easy option to be seen to be environmentally friendly is surely a winning strategy in today's green-conscious society and the double carbon footprint reduction will appeal to many.

Boeing Working To Reduce Carbon Footprint In the Aviation Industry

Boeing has announced a 3 prong plan for attacking the size of the carbon footprint of commercial planes. The three areas in which work is being done to reduce the carbon footprint is in the weight of the airplanes and their fuel efficiency, improvements in air-traffic management and testing sustainable biofuels with the goal of finding renewable fuels for aviation that don’t compete with crops for food.

Together, all of these initiatives represent the way forward for the aviation industry and it is believed that putting these improvements in place won’t increase costs noticeably.

Those within the industry have said that each of the carbon footprint reduction plan points are achievable within the industry but it would need government support to make it happen.

Airlines have demanded increased efficiency from airplane and engine manufacturers and manufacturers have responded. Over the past 50 years of flying the carbon emissions per mile flown have dropped by 70%. With further technological work, that figure can continue to rise.

Precision information, commonly shared, safely enables such fuel-saving and emissions-reducing operational changes as continuous, low-power descents, more direct routing, closer spacing, and curved approaches to landing.

As for the biofuels trialed, test flights have been conducted using mixtures of standard jet fuel and several different sustainable biofuels, among them fuels made from algae and camelina. One of the features that have been demonstrated with these fuels is that they have a lower freezing point than petroleum and that they can also have a higher energy content per gallon.

Government Carbon Footprint Blueprint in Sheffield

We’ve seen quite a few local government carbon footprint initiatives over the past few years, it makes good sense politically to announce some sort of proactive plan of action. To that end, a blueprint has been announced in Sheffield that outlines how the city can reduce its carbon footprint by up to 30%.

The report has been constructed to focus on housing, business and transport and advises residents how they can contribute. One of those initiatives is for the home owner to be able to hire a smart meter to check energy use. The thinking being that if you are aware of the level of energy you have used you will be in a position to take steps to cut back.

Also contained within the guide is the suggestion to generate more of the city’s electricity locally and to provide a new public transport infrastructure.

The council has already invested in a project where council services and staff are using electric and gas powered vehicles.

Councillor Shaffaq Mohammed, cabinet member for climate change and local environment, said: "We recognise that we cannot reduce the amount of carbon used in the city overnight, but by working together with residents and businesses we can make a big difference."

Devon County Has Reduced Its Carbon Footprint

The Devon County Council has reported that it has managed to significantly reduce its carbon footprint, exceeding its green performance targets. It has estimated that 422 tonnes of carbon have been saved through various measures. These include the installation of a voltage optimiser at County Hall and upgraded street lighting in parts of Devon.

An estimated 700 tonnes of CO2 is expected to be saved by making use of a new biomass boiler at County Hall in Exeter as well as voltage optimisers in other buildings.

Devon has also been supporting a program that encourages volunteer staff to encourage colleagues to get involved to reduce waste and take part in recycling programs, improve energy efficiency and to use sustainable transport.

There is a reported increase in the overall recycling level and the carbon footprint is being reduced accordingly.

Tips On Saving Cash And Reducing Your Carbon Footprint

Everyone is keen to tell us how we might be able to reduce our carbon footprint with the promise that doing so will also save us money. A double-glazing firm in the UK, Safestyle UK has given its five top tips on how we might achieve a smaller carbon footprint. Some of these may seem ridiculously straightforward, but then again, it’s the little things that count and add up to major savings.

The first suggestion is to keep taking regular meter readings to keep track of your energy use during the month allowing you to cut back if you think it’s too high. The argument is that not doing so will let you remain on the high usage and result in paying too much each month.

Take the time to compare energy suppliers. You may be paying more than you might otherwise be if you simply switched.

Take advantage of the discounts given to people who pay their bills via direct debit or paperless accounts. Many energy providers offer these discounts as a matter of course.

The 4th piece of advice is really a slam dunk and rather vague, simply stating to use energy more efficiently. We all know that, many people are having trouble doing it though. At least the company gives the example of switching off appliances that are constantly on standby can save up to £37 per year alone.

The last piece of advice is no surprise seeing as how it comes from a double-glazing firm. That’s right, the last piece of advice on how you might both reduce your carbon footprint and save money is to install double glazing which can help reduce the heating bills of the home and also the CO2 emissions.

So, okay, this is pretty much a rehash of many of the tips that we have been trying to follow for the last few years anyway. But sometimes it’s good to re-emphasize some of the steps necessary to shrink the carbon footprint.

Carbon Footprint Reduction Strategy : Eat Less

Here’s a novel approach to reducing your carbon footprint and, for the majority of us, it will also give you a bonus benefit by improving your health. The strategy is simple: eat less.

The fact is, the more you eat, the larger is your carbon footprint because of the added extras that come with producing the food you consume. Carbon emissions are attached to the manufacture of the products, the packaging that the products come in and the transportation to get them to the store.

As you cut back on the food you eat, along with everyone else’s cutbacks, the demand will be effected which will flow back to a lower production requirement. With less demand to replace food on the supermarket shelves fewer products may be produced down the line.

Another great way to lower your carbon footprint through the foods we eat is by buying locally produced and organic products.

The simple 2 word strategy to combat an expanding carbon footprint could also combat an expanding waistline and will also save you money. How many incentives do you need to help the planet?