UNIVERSITY OF THE WEST INDIES

FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

DEPARTMENT OF LIFE SCIENCES

ESST 1006 Human Impacts on the Environment
Semester 2 January 2014)


Measuring Carbon Footprints

Carbon footprint is used to refer to the amount of carbon (usually in tonnes) being emitted by
an activity or organization. It is defined as : The total amount of greenhouse gases produced to
directly and indirectly support human activities, usually expressed in equivalent tons of carbon
dioxide (CO2). In other words: When you drive a car, the engine burns fuel which creates a
certain amount of CO2, depending on its fuel consumption and the driving distance. When cool
your houses with fans or air conditioners using electricity, the generation of the electrical power
may also have emitted a certain amount of CO2. When you buy food and goods, the production
of the food and goods also emitted some quantities of CO2. Your carbon footprint is the sum
of all emissions of CO2 (carbon dioxide), which is induced by your activities in a given time
frame. Carbon footprint has increased 11-fold since 1961.

Usually a carbon footprint is calculated for the time period of a year. Carbon calculators turn
easy-to-supply information like annual mileage and monthly power usage into a measurable
tonnage of carbon. Most people try to reduce their carbon footprint, but others aim to erase it
completely. When people attempt carbon neutrality, they cut their emissions as much as
possible and offset the rest. Individual behaviors and consumer choices impact an individuals
carbon footprint. Reducing CO
2
emissions benefits:
The environment
The economy
Society
Practices that benefit all three of these are said to be sustainable.

In this lab you will explore several online carbon footprint calculators. You need to think about:
What they are asking? How they are compiled? Your behavioral information, What kinds of
assumptions are being made? and how accurately their data collection methodology captures the
carbon impact of your actions.
Goals:
To understand the impacts of your consumption habits on carbon cycle
To determine individual carbon footprints
Pre-Lab Homework
* For this lab to work, the following steps 1 through 4 need to be done BEFORE Lab 2.
Failure to complete the pre-lab homework will result in you receiving zero (0) for this lab.
Carbon calculators:
1) Nature Conservancys Carbon Footprint Calculator
http://www.nature.org/initiatives/climatechange/calculator/

2) www.carbonfootprint.com/calculator.aspx

3) EPA Greenhouse Gas Household Emissions Calculator
http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/emissions/ind_calculator.html

NOTE: for each of the following steps, results for each person on your bench would be entered
on the specific lab day. One person on each bench should take responsibility of entering the data
and providing a copy to the entire bench.
1. Before the lab session, each person should independently follow the directions given for each
of the three assigned carbon calculators to estimate the carbon footprint for their homes. Make
sure you normalize the numbers so they are in comparable units by converting to tons of CO
2
.
Each person should enter their carbon footprint results for each of the three calculators Table 1
Table 1

Carbon
Calculator
Nicholas (tons
CO2)
Name 2 (tons
CO2)
Name 3 (tons
CO2)
Name 4 (tons
CO2)
Name 5 (tons
CO2)
1 48 / yr
2 5.3
3 53.7 / yr





2. Hypothetically try to reduce your carbon footprint by 20%.
I would unplug appliances and electronics when not in use, buy clothing only when needed and
consider using second-handed clothing, and adopt recycling habits
Which question might you answer differently to reduce the footprint?
We use ENERGY STAR appliances and electronics and unplug link one
(answered as rarely but would choose always)
I regularly shop for clothes link two
(answer as I only buy second hand clothes)
All recycling questions answered as no in link three

3. In Table 2 write down a few sentences about the change you personally decided to make, and
how you decided on that choice. Think about the values and assumptions embedded in your
choice. What ideas from the readings in this class, in other classes or from your prior experience
are informing your choice? What further information could help you to make this choice?
Table 2

Name Behavior Change Justification for Change
Nicholas Use more energy star products They are more eco-friendly and use less power. My
laptop is an energy star product and always prompts
me to use eco mode for power savings.





4. After completing Table 2, recalculate your footprint using the three carbon calculators with
this change in mind. (Don't worry about over estimating or underestimating what you could
modify, just use your instinct and recalculate once.) Enter your numbers in Table 3.


Table 3

Carbon
Calculator
Nicholas (tons
CO2)
Name 2 (tons
CO2)
Name 3 (tons
CO2
Name 4 (tons
CO2)
Name 5 (tons
CO2)
1 38
2 4.9
3 48

5. Bring this information to the lab session

6. Think about and be prepared to discuss the following questions:
How did your individual numbers compare for the different calculators?
On scale one I was below average, scale two; below average, scale three; above average
There were drastic differences in the numbers.

Did you get the same results for each?
The numbers had big differences in between them, they were not the same

What do think contributed to differences, if there were any?
The scales used for comparison, the locations (Trinidad was only a location for calculator three) ,
the tested parameters (scale three was most in depth), the site owners (the EPA has the best site
possibly because it is the most established organization. The second link is not even owned by an
organization), year of calculator publishing (first ; 2014, second; nil, third ; 2013 September)

During the Lab Session:
Group Discussion
With your bench, compare the criteria used by the different carbon footprint calculators and the
different impact that particular lifestyle changes had in different calculators. Here are the
questions we want you to answer.
Examining the carbon calculators as technologies
Why are the numbers from each calculator, both before and after each change, different?
(Think of these calculators as technologies. Are they designed differently?)






What did you learn about the design of these different carbon calculators by comparing
results from different calculators for different members of your group?






What tradeoffs do designers of this technology make in designing their particular carbon
footprint calculators (e.g., user friendly v. complexity, targeted vs. comprehensive)?






Talk about the differential impacts of behavioral changes among the different calculators.
Why do you think some behavioral changes had a bigger impact according to some
calculators than others? What aspects of the calculator designs are responsible for these
differences? What implicit assumptions or explicit design criteria are behind these design
differences?









NOTE:
1. This lab must be submitted at the end of the session.
2. Students should walk with their Laptops