By definition, carbon footprint is the amount of carbon dioxide and other carbon compounds emitted into the atmosphere due to the consumption of fossil fuels by a particular person, group, etc. Although greenhouse gases do occur naturally, human activity is the greatest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions. Your carbon footprint — or your impact on the environment — measures the greenhouse gases that you have created. The good news is that we can become accountable for the greenhouse gasses we omit and make the necessary changes to reduce our carbon footprint to levels that are safe but the bad news is that we are running out of time. Greenhouse gasses effect the climate because they keep heat in the earth’s atmosphere. When the “extra” heat is retained like at the current levels, we have global warming: melting the ice caps releases tons of previously frozen water into the oceans, causing them to rise and simultaneously increase the water’s temperature which has a drastic effect on the food chain (which we are dependent on) as well as flooding and intensifying other weather patterns. In our first article, we cited 6 examples of what you can do immediately to become a Climate Change Fighter. In our future articles we will, each month, examine a specific part of the Climate Crisis through factual analysis and offer explicit actions that you can take to reduce your carbon footprint and help to sustain the wonderful planet that fosters and nourishes all living forms of life.
What is Carbon Footprint and Why Is It So Important?
