Energy and Electricity - Introduction to Carbon Capture and Sequestration

Environmental Engineering Reference

In-Depth Information

which result directly from one's actions, including the use of electricity

and burning fossil fuels for transportation. Secondary emissions are

those which result indirectly from one's activities, including the carbon

emissions associated with the foods one eats and the products one

purchases.

In comparing carbon emissions around the globe, Luxembourg had

the highest per capita emissions at 33.8 tonnes CO 2 . The United States

was second with 28.6 tonnes CO 2 per person. In contrast, developing

countries like China and India have per capita emissions of 3.1 tonnes

and 1.8 tonnes CO 2 , respectively.

California's Climate Plan aims to reduce CO 2 emissions to 1990 lev-

els by 2020, which would mean reducing CO 2 emissions to 10 tonnes per

person. To see how feasible this reduction would be, we calculated the

personal carbon footprint of three UC Berkeley students. We used the

calculator provided by Carbon Footprint Ltd. The average CO 2 emissions

in our group is 11.92 tonnes CO 2 per person per year. This includes

contributions from transportation, housing, and lifestyle choices (see

Table 1.5.2 ). The secondary lifestyle factors include food and consumer

choices, such as how often one recycles or how often one eats seasonal

foods.

Table 1.5.2 Personal carbon footprints for three UC Berkeley students

Average

(metric

tonnes CO 2 )