How to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint

Earth is a permanent place of residence for us, so isn’t it vital that we take the initiative to ensure the planet’s future by thinking about simple things to reduce climate change, reduce landfill and put a stop to excessive pollution?

If each individual makes a small, personal contribution and keeps up with a few new lifestyle changes, we will be surrounded by a happy and healthy world that we’re proud to live in. Ensure a bright future by taking a moment to think about what you’re doing. Being green is easy -it’s just about knowing how to do it and putting it into practice that’ll make all the difference. This month, our waste management experts are here to share with you how you can reduce your carbon footprint.

Carbon footprint is the total of carbon dioxide released into the environment, produced by humans through numerous activities. CO2 is a greenhouse gas that takes a long time to escape the atmosphere, for example, 10% of any CO2 produced today will take over 10,000 years to be completely eradicated.

By producing too much CO2 into our atmosphere, we are trapping heat and therefore, warming the planet; which is rapidly effecting climate change. This downwards spiral of events have a knock on effect on oceans, making them more acidic and killing a variety of sea life – not to mention melting ice caps, which polar bears rely on for basic survival.  

Ways to improve your carbon footprint

• When your light bulbs need replacing, change them for energy saving bulbs
• Unplug unused electronics
• Do your laundry at 30’c
• Insulate your home, not only will this keep the warm air in during the winter but will keep it out throughout the summer too
• Take less time in the shower
• Avoid purchasing overly packed products – but if they can be recycled then make sure you recycle them
• Take the bus, walk or cycle to work
• Pack waste-free lunches, use a container so you don’t have to use individual bags for your sandwiches
• Opt for email receipts, rather than paper (you can do this with the bank)
• Compost your food
• Know what you can recycle
• Understand waste management

How to reduce your carbon footprint by knowing what to recycle

Knowing what you can and can’t recycle is a huge leap for individuals on their way to reducing carbon footprints. This is because your basic home recycling can only deal with aluminum cans, paper/cardboard, glass and plastics.

It’s also important to note that all recyclable materials must be clean. By putting things that aren’t recyclable or dirty into your home waste, it will either be refused, or it will have to be sorted once it gets to waste management centres. As you can probably imagine, if a number of homes do the same, it becomes a job of sifting through general waste, rather than quick and simple recycling and this becomes a much lengthier process. When the fuss increases the activities increase, as do the CO2 levels – so do it right first time and let’s help lower our carbon footprint.

Know your local waste management centres

For those bits and pieces that you can’t recycle at home, find out your local waste management services. These places have top of the range recycling equipment that can deal with a variety of materials including, computers, scrap metals and rubble – just to name a few.

A dedicated waste management centre strives to reduce landfill, which is why services like ours exist. We ensure that waste is either reused, recycled or incinerated to produce as much energy as possible.

Make a start on your green journey today when you come to Thompson Fuel & Skip Hire. We offer a number of services to suit all your needs, so why not start making a difference right now? We can be found in Armthorpe, Rossington and Besscarr, so if we’re local to you and you would like more information on waste management and recycling services, contact us today and let’s work together.