What can you do for your planet?

• Climate Summit Glossary so as not to get lost between broadcasts and acronyms
• European Union: The European Chamber declares the 'climatic emergency'

01. Know your footprint

It is possible to calculate your personal carbon footprint and discover which of your daily actions pollute the most. On the network you will find CO2 emission calculators (for example: http://calcarbono.servicios4.aragon.es/index.html). If you intend to reduce your footprint, you will see that many of the emissions that your daily life generates are unnecessary, exaggerated or can easily decrease. Several of the actions aimed at controlling them will also allow you to save money. Some are even beneficial for your health . At the institutional level, the Ministry for Ecological Transition maintains a voluntary registry for companies and organizations that wish to calculate and offset their carbon footprint, collaborating with different forestry projects.

02. Separate waste

Check that each waste ends up in the appropriate container is a minimum effort, and it is worth it. You will facilitate the work of the recycling plants and you will greatly enhance the efficiency of the process so that the materials are reused. Few such simple and everyday gestures will have so much environmental impact. In addition, it is a battle that is being won. According to Ecoembes data, 78.8% of plastic containers, cans, briks and paper or cardboard containers are already recycled in Spain. In 2018, each citizen deposited, on average, 15.7 kilograms of plastic containers, cans and briks in the yellow container, as well as and 18.1 kilograms of paper and cardboard in the blue container. In both cases, the increase was greater than 12% compared to 2017: the largest increase recorded since the current system was implemented .

03. Save at home

Good domestic insulation in windows and doors allows, in addition to saving energy, emit about 45 kilograms less CO2 per year. The savings measures at home are many: disconnect appliances when not in use, reduce the use of air conditioning or heating, perform good maintenance of electrical appliances ... Turn off the lights you do not need and, in summer, use The fan only by day. At night, it is better to open the window (except invasion of mosquitoes). Opening the fridge only when necessary already represents a small saving of about 7.57 kilos per year. Another little trick - and healthy - is to use the stairs instead of the elevator. Try that your house has the certificate of energy saving , and do not forget to also control the expenditure of water. Turn off the tap when not in use and install double discharge tanks. By the way, the toilet is not a bin.

04. Public transport

By choosing bus, subway, bicycle or simply walking whenever you can, you will avoid emissions. In many countries, including Spain, transport is the sector that produces the most greenhouse gas emissions. Only road traffic already accounts for 27% of total emissions , a third of which, in turn, is generated in cities. Half of the journeys we make by car do not exceed three kilometers away, and 75% of journeys by private vehicle are made with a single occupant. On the roads, private vehicles make 50% of energy consumption in transport. In some cities, transportation users can calculate how many emissions they have saved during their bus or subway journeys.

05. Do not abuse meat

Climate change experts agree with doctors, although for different reasons, in the need to moderate the consumption of red and processed meat. The environmental impact of meat, especially that which comes from intensive farms and livestock, is far superior to that of vegetables. Globally, 25% of greenhouse emissions come from the food sector , and 58% of that percentage is due to animal products. Increasingly, experts emphasize the importance of transforming food habits globally in order to tackle climate change. Although it is not necessary to stop eating meat. In fact, the grasslands where cattle feed their teeth are home to a great biodiversity in the Iberian Peninsula. But scientific consensus demands restraint, both for your health and for the planet.

06. Reduce garbage

It is estimated that at least one third of all food produced ends up in the garbage, an absurd waste from any point of view, including the environment. Reuse leftovers whenever you can and, both in food and other products, buying with a head reduces your carbon footprint. It is estimated that each European citizen generates an average of 500 kilograms of municipal waste per year . There are numerous daily actions that help reduce this amount: do not print what you do not need, refill the ink cartridges instead of throwing them away, use your own cup of coffee at work, reuse school or office supplies and use both sides . Returning to food, preparing fresh food also reduces the amount of garbage, and health thanks.

07. Local and seasonal

Eating seasonal and produced food near home reduces, in general, the emissions necessary for food to reach your table. It is not a fixed rule, it also depends on the production processes and the means of transport used. For example, the train is the least polluting, except, of course, to go shopping directly to a neighboring farmer. The European Parliament estimated in 2015 that 15% of farmers already sold half of their products through short supply chains , that is, with few or no intermediaries. For the first time, the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) has focused on the current period (2014-20) in these exchanges, which are expected to enhance market entry and the profit margin of small farmers.

08. Install panels

Photovoltaic solar panels, biomass fuels and other renewable energy for the home are already widely available. Especially in countries like Spain, with lots of sun and high energy consumption. Installing panels at home will generate clean energy and save. In our country, each household with this available energy releases to the atmosphere an average of 1.3 tons less CO2 per year . In other places, the benefit is also important, although minor. In Chile, the country that chairs COP25, the average saving is estimated at 493 kilos. Another clean energy for the home is that produced by biomass fuels, which can be used in some models of boilers, stoves or fireplaces. They are practically neutral in terms of emissions, since biomass comes from biological residues, mainly from agricultural or fishing activities.

09. Share vehicle

If you go by car, it is more profitable to share daily transfers. In addition to saving fuel, you will pollute less. The Porelclima website estimates the saving of emissions at 2,133 kilograms of CO2 per year, which makes it one of the most effective measures that can be taken on a personal level . Which is not strange, if you take into account that each liter of burned gasoline generates about 2.3 kilos of CO2. Taking the initiative and meeting some colleagues should not be difficult. But, as sometimes a small push is required, some companies and institutions have already put in place their own system so that the employees organize themselves through an app and arrive together at the job. What, with a little good will, also enhances relationships and personal ties.

10. Plant a tree

You can support in different ways, including volunteering, the associations that conserve the forests around you. Forest masses absorb much of the excess CO2 in the atmosphere. Globally, half of the emitted greenhouse gases remain in the atmosphere, while the other half is collected by vegetation and oceans . That is why it is important to reduce emissions, but also conserve forests. If you plant, for example, a common chestnut or an oak, it is estimated that, over 30 years, each of these trees will have absorbed 150 kilograms of CO2. Two species also common in Spain, and that eliminate large amounts of gases from the atmosphere, are the banana ( Platanus hispanica ), which removes 650 kilos of CO2 in 30 years, and the pine ( Pinus pinaster ), which absorbs 550 kilos.

11. Clean points

Electronics is also recycled. Take home appliances and electronic equipment that you no longer use to an appropriate recycling point. The measure affects both large appliances - refrigerator, washing machine ...- and small ones - dryer, coffee maker ...-. This kind of waste is growing in the world at a rate three times higher than the rest of urban waste, which means that it produces tens of millions of tons per year. In addition, these wastes require particular decontamination and treatment processes, so it is necessary to take them to clean points or to businesses that take care of them. The ideal, of course, is to take care of them so that they last longer and repair them whenever possible. The batteries, of course, are also recycled, and in Spain it is very easy: we have the second largest network of collection points in Europe , just behind Germany.

12. Don't throw it, think!

Containers, cardboard boxes, bottles, clothes, shelves ... Many products can be reused to minimize waste and maximize its useful life. In addition to recycling and reducing waste, this third r must be taken into account: reuse. That is, give a second chance to a product whose shelf life seemed over. As Greenpece, creator of the slogan of the three Rs, recalls, "recycling is not enough" . In addition, reuse is a process in which children can participate. Surely they come up with surprising uses for all kinds of objects that adults consider unusable. After all, the key to reuse, both professionally and domestically, is imagination. Let them transform the pots into lunar rockets.

13. War on plastic

A simple plastic bag can take a whopping 500 years to degrade. Another more hopeful fact is that avoiding it is very simple: try to bring your own shopping cart or cloth bags to the market and always avoid plastic containers and bottles. To the extent possible, purchase bulk products. Many foods and products come too wrapped. This has been demonstrated by specific recycling actions at the door of supermarkets, in which many consumers participated, leaving the left-over packaging right there and, incidentally, lightening the weight of their purchase. The objective of the European Union is that we use 40 plastic bags per person per year in 2025 . It seems easy, but in 2018 180 bags per inhabitant were still used in Spain.

14. Take care of your car

Keeping your car in good condition and driving efficiently reduces emissions . Start without stepping on the accelerator and use the first only to start the march. There are already numerous electrical alternatives in the market. In Spain, the National Air Quality Plan established since 2016 a sticker system that forces the manufacturer to classify it according to the pollution it generates. The optimal classification from the environmental point of view is that of Zero emissions, represented by the blue sticker obtained by 100% electric vehicles or plug-in hybrids with autonomy exceeding 40 kilometers. The next one is the Eco, reserved for plug-in hybrid cars with less autonomy, non-plug-in hybrids or vehicles powered by natural gas or liquefied gas.

15. If you have a garden ...

Covering the garden with grass consumes a lot of water, so local plants are preferable. Which, in addition, will provide shelter and food for birds and other wildlife in the area. Try to avoid exotic plants. In addition, you can take advantage of rainwater. Storing it is simple and serves to irrigate the garden, plants and perform other household tasks that do not require drinking water. Finally, you can transform your garbage into fertilizer. Not only will you reduce your carbon footprint, but you will also get a high quality subscription. It is estimated that this last measure can save an average of 743 kilograms of CO2 emissions per year , a considerable amount, provided you have space for the composting machine. Although there are also models for indoor use.

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