coyou

Eating less meat will help you on your quest to reduce your carbon emissions. The cow is the worst emissions offender, largely because of what come out of it’s other end!

Have a read of this article

Burning fuel to produce fertiliser to grow feed, to produce meat and to transport it - and clearing vegetation for grazing - produces 9 per cent of all emissions of carbon dioxide, the most common greenhouse gas. And their wind and manure emit more than one third of emissions of another, methane, which warms the world 20 times faster than carbon dioxide.

 

So If you don’t fancy becoming fully vegan, just a reduction in the amount of meat meals you consume will help.

Nobody (with any sense) is going to question that Climate Change is happening. Thankfully public opinion now seems to be turning against the deniers as the problems of man made accelerated climate change become mainstream. This turns everyone’s attention to solutions.

If you want to get to grips with the complex issues involved in solving climate change then I can recommend reading George Monbiot’s book Heat: How to Stop the Planet Burning.

This book more than any other will give you an insight into how we’ve got ourselves into this situation and offers ways in which we might get ourselves out of it.

Definitely worth a read.

Small steps can make a big difference. (especially if a lot of people make them together) So here are some kitchen tips….

1. When you’ve got stuff in a pan, make sure you put it a lid on it. This will reduce the cooking time.
2. Don’t fill the kettle up, if you are only making one cup of tea.
3. If you have a garden, invest in a composter. This will reduce the amount of methane produced in landfilled sites (Methane is worse for the environment than co2 emissions.)
4. If you are boiling an egg, but the egg in cold water. Bring it to the boil. Then turn the heat off and leave for 5 mins. You have used less power than boiling the water, then putting the egg in.
5. Check your fridge, you might have it turned up to the max, turning it down slightly, will reduce the power you use.
6. Use your microwave. Weirdly, it uses about a third of the energy of a normal oven.
7. Try not to buy food with unnecessary packaging. Its a waste and often ends up back in the ground producing more methane.
8. If you have a dishwasher, only put it on at night and always make sure it is completely full.