In which I am cross at the Grauniad
Those unfortunate enough to have exposure to my periodic episodes of wibble may recall that a while back a was very upset because, having taken the Guardian's carbon footprint calculator test, I found out that I have a much larger carbon footprint than the average UK consumer (17.6 to the average 15.4).
Now, before we go any further, allow me to briefly list some of the things I do to reduce my environmental impact:
- I don't own a car
- I walk to work (which is in Swindon, so you'll forgive me if I feel like I deserve a fucking cookie for not living somewhere nice and commuting)
- I live in a flat that is just big enough for 1 person
- I use energy saving appliances, and the minimum number of those - I have no toaster, microwave, tumble drier, or freezer and no gadgets other than a Kenwood Chef
- I don't watch TV, don't own a desktop computer (in fact don't own any computer at all - mine's a work laptop)
- I turn off all appliances at the wall when not in use
- I never turn my thermostat to over 19C
- I recycle all of my paper, cardboard, metal, glass, and plastic. My building doesn't have any recycling services from the council, so I do this mostly on foot to the bottle/paper banks
- I carry a folding shopper with me everywhere and use the very few plastic bags I do pick up as bin bags (I don't buy bin bags)
- I never throw books, clothes or homeware away; I either use them until they are fit for rags or give them to charity
- I've switched to buying 90% of my books second hand, in Oxfam shops or online (thanks, Sarah for the recommendations!)
- Last summer I started gradually taking meat out of my diet and now eat meat no more than once per week, and then only it it is certified organic and local (from the farmers market in Swindon or a farm shop in Downend where Alan lives)
So how, you'd be forgiven for asking, did I rack up 17.6 tonnes of carbon last year? Simple: I fly. Boy, do I fly. Approximately 4 times as much as the average person in the UK. And according to that calculator, this is the main contributor to my obscene footprint (though they had a few choice words for my reading and eating out habits, too).
Since that really put the wind up me, I have made all kinds of plans to reduce my flight numbers: we have 2 railway holidays and one trip to the Lake District scheduled for next year, so hopefully I will only have to fly home and for work, both of which are non-negotiable. Steps have been taken to tighten up the domestic discipline further. Eating out has been severely reduced. Xmas dinner is a nut roast.
But, far from letting me feel just a little bit good about myself for five fucking minutes, in comes the bloody Grauniad this weekend with it's "ethical living" special supplement, to tell me that, actually, the average carbon footprint of a UK person is 11 tonnes, and that even though civilian aviation contributes 2-3% of the total emissions in the world, it is nevertheless the number one thing you can be doing to hurt the planet, because it just is. And that even though there is no such thing as "ethical" airlines, it's the no-frills flights that you should really "stay away" from.
Which tells me two things:
1. They don't actually know what they're talking about anymore
2. This is really a moral issue for them now, with that competitive purity component to which the bar is set so high as to be unachievable, condemning everyone to a state of perpetual sinfulness
Oh, and 2a.: it's all got a strong class angle.
I'm not going to stop doing any of the above things just because the Guardian are a bunch of sanctimonious dickheads, but I'm pissed the fuck off that they've managed to take something that's been a life long commitment of mine, made decades before this whole business became a trendy "lifestyle" issue with raffia bags and special weekend supplements, and turn it into a rod for my back. Dipshits.
Now, before we go any further, allow me to briefly list some of the things I do to reduce my environmental impact:
- I don't own a car
- I walk to work (which is in Swindon, so you'll forgive me if I feel like I deserve a fucking cookie for not living somewhere nice and commuting)
- I live in a flat that is just big enough for 1 person
- I use energy saving appliances, and the minimum number of those - I have no toaster, microwave, tumble drier, or freezer and no gadgets other than a Kenwood Chef
- I don't watch TV, don't own a desktop computer (in fact don't own any computer at all - mine's a work laptop)
- I turn off all appliances at the wall when not in use
- I never turn my thermostat to over 19C
- I recycle all of my paper, cardboard, metal, glass, and plastic. My building doesn't have any recycling services from the council, so I do this mostly on foot to the bottle/paper banks
- I carry a folding shopper with me everywhere and use the very few plastic bags I do pick up as bin bags (I don't buy bin bags)
- I never throw books, clothes or homeware away; I either use them until they are fit for rags or give them to charity
- I've switched to buying 90% of my books second hand, in Oxfam shops or online (thanks, Sarah for the recommendations!)
- Last summer I started gradually taking meat out of my diet and now eat meat no more than once per week, and then only it it is certified organic and local (from the farmers market in Swindon or a farm shop in Downend where Alan lives)
So how, you'd be forgiven for asking, did I rack up 17.6 tonnes of carbon last year? Simple: I fly. Boy, do I fly. Approximately 4 times as much as the average person in the UK. And according to that calculator, this is the main contributor to my obscene footprint (though they had a few choice words for my reading and eating out habits, too).
Since that really put the wind up me, I have made all kinds of plans to reduce my flight numbers: we have 2 railway holidays and one trip to the Lake District scheduled for next year, so hopefully I will only have to fly home and for work, both of which are non-negotiable. Steps have been taken to tighten up the domestic discipline further. Eating out has been severely reduced. Xmas dinner is a nut roast.
But, far from letting me feel just a little bit good about myself for five fucking minutes, in comes the bloody Grauniad this weekend with it's "ethical living" special supplement, to tell me that, actually, the average carbon footprint of a UK person is 11 tonnes, and that even though civilian aviation contributes 2-3% of the total emissions in the world, it is nevertheless the number one thing you can be doing to hurt the planet, because it just is. And that even though there is no such thing as "ethical" airlines, it's the no-frills flights that you should really "stay away" from.
Which tells me two things:
1. They don't actually know what they're talking about anymore
2. This is really a moral issue for them now, with that competitive purity component to which the bar is set so high as to be unachievable, condemning everyone to a state of perpetual sinfulness
Oh, and 2a.: it's all got a strong class angle.
I'm not going to stop doing any of the above things just because the Guardian are a bunch of sanctimonious dickheads, but I'm pissed the fuck off that they've managed to take something that's been a life long commitment of mine, made decades before this whole business became a trendy "lifestyle" issue with raffia bags and special weekend supplements, and turn it into a rod for my back. Dipshits.