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If 10,000 Biters offset their yearly CO2 emissions, it'll have the effect of moving 29,000 drivers of SUVs to hybrids for a year.

COCKTAIL FACT

The New Oxford American Dictionary's 2006 Word of the Year was "carbon neutral." (We'd like to point out to the editors that this is actually two words).

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home ›   tip library ›   Healthy Resolutions - Calculating and Offsetting Your Carbon Footprint

Wanna get started on a low carbon diet?

The Bite

There's no day like today. In 2007, make a few small changes and watch the lbs of CO2 drop.

The Benefits

  • Clear the air. The average American emits 20 tons of CO2 per year, compared to the international average of 4 tons. (In case you missed the memo, CO2 is a big contributor to climate change.)
  • Offset the pollution you create. Purchase carbon offsets, which support programs that fund alternative energy research and tree plantings.
  • Lose the guilt. 

Personally Speaking

Jen's resolved to buy a diesel-engine Jetta and run it on biodiesel this year so that she can sport a "Zero Carbon Diet" bumper sticker (thankfully, she's foregoing the vanity plates).

Wanna Try?

Jan 08,2007


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Cutting Carbon Where It Counts

You want to know the best way to cut carbons where they count?



Take the MyFootprint.org quiz which will tell you how many planets we would need if the rest of the world's population lived as you do, then do the analysis to see where you racked up the most points (this cool tool lets you know how). 



Share your score with other Biters, here. (Come on, I will tell you my score if you tell us yours!  Mine is 4.6 Planets.  I need to cut down on air travel for the biggest impact to my score. But I can't, so I will make sure to buy offsets for those flights instead.)



Off to talk to Billy at Native Energy about getting some offsets for all of us at the Bite - and even our subscribers, just for signing up... Jen



PS:  we were interviewed on a TreeHugger radio spot for exactly this notion... some of our compadres have some interesting thoughts on cutting carbons and New Year's resolutions in general...



TreeHugger Radio 14: New Year’s Edition





As we step into double-0 seven, TreeHugger Radio has asked some of the brightest stars in the green blogosphere about their resolutions for the New Year. We queried Heather Stephenson and Jen Boulden, creators of Ideal Bite; consultant and brainy green hottie Summer Rayne Oakes; Ben Jervey, founder of The Big Green Apple; designer, architecture student, and Inhabitat creator Jill Fehrenbacher; green business guru Joel Makower; and TreeHugger writer Jacob Gordon. Resolutions range from reading more books to eating less meat, from pushing green design to watching Wal-Mart. ::TreeHugger Radio (listen)

Biter Comments...
I used the Slate Green Challenge, http://www.slate.com/id/2151739/, and my annual carbon contribution is 12,725 lbs. See http://planetrelations.com/archives/47 for more details.

Posted by: Planet Relations | January 08, 2007 at 01:30 PM

Sadly, my footprint is 5.5 planets. I suppose I could gain comfort from the fact that this is average, but I don't. However, this gives me some perspective for change. I can change our food consumption, and hopefully change the amount of waste produced.

Posted by: Robin | January 08, 2007 at 03:00 PM

Not to knock the biodiesel call, but I don't think using Biodiesel is a "Zero-Carbon Diet." Sure it's not burning fossil fuel carbons, but I still think it's pumping out CO2.

Posted by: Ted Light | January 08, 2007 at 05:24 PM

Another good resource is the Consumer's Guide to Carbon Offset Providers available at http://www.cleanair-coolplanet.org/. Commentary about the report is available at: http://www.buildinggreen.com/auth/article.cfm?fileName=160103a.xml

Posted by: Planet Relations | January 08, 2007 at 06:22 PM

zero-carbon diet does not equal biodiesel. all hydrocarbons (fats/oils like vegetable oil or gasoline) react with oxygen (the stuff animals need and plants don't) to produce carbon dioxide (a contributor to global warming that the EPA should regulate). if anything Jen should sell her car and walk, bike & take mass transit. she should also advocate for a CO2 cap&trade system!

Posted by: Jai | January 08, 2007 at 06:36 PM

One of the best things people can do to fight global warming, hands down, is to stop eating animal products. The new UN report, Livestock's Long Shadow, says that animal agriculture accounts for 18% of greenhouse gas emissions--more than ALL forms of transportation COMBINED. Going veg--or at the very least dramatically reducing use of animal products--is a fast, easy, and cheap way for Biters to make a real difference NOW.

Posted by: Kaydee | January 08, 2007 at 11:25 PM

I just want to make a plug for the train. The quiz makes you very aware of how much air travel impacts your footprint. I once heard that air travel is the fastest and cheapest way to cook the planet... and I believe it! The train isn't always a convienient option, but if you can do it, it's a great way to travel. jill

Posted by: Jill | January 10, 2007 at 06:54 PM

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