Carbon Tips

Climate Change tips for individuals

• Car related carbon emissions
• Carbon emissions from water heating
• Carbon emissions from electricity & appliances
• What else can I do?

Car related carbon emissions  

• Take public transport, bike or walk whenever possible. It saves carbon emissions and money.
• Choose a less polluting car – a fuel-efficient car can save up to 20 tonnes of greenhouse gas and up to $10.000 on fuel over its lifetime. New diesel cars are generally more efficient than petrol.
• Drive cars efficiently: Drive smoothly and avoid start-stop traffic
• Ensure tyres are pumped up to maximum pressure so that they run smoothly
• Remove unnecessary weight from your car as well as unused roof racks and other features which create more air drag
• Carpool whenever possible
• Get your air conditioner checked regularly for leaks and keep the filters clean. Use it only when absolutely necessary.
• Offset the carbon emissions from your car

Carbon emissions from water heating  

• Install an energy efficient showerhead - it can save your household up to $100 per year in water and energy costs. We would be happy to provide you with a quote for water saving showerheads - just contact us
• Buy a solar or gas energy efficient water heater – look for environmentally friendly labels
• Take shorter showers and avoid using baths
• Avoid rinsing dishes under running hot water
• Avoid using small amounts of hot water when cold water will do (e.g. to wash your hands) – it saves the carbon emissions needed to heat the cold water in the pipes
• Switch off your hot water system when you’re going away for a few days
• Fix dripping taps
• Ensure exposed hot water pipes are well insulated
• The federal government is offering a $1000 rebate to replace electric hot water systems with new solar hot water systems.  Only available to households that earn under $100,000pa. Click here for the full details of the rebate.
• The NSW government is also offering a solar hotwater rebate of up to $1200 to households. Click here for the full details of the rebate.

Carbon emissions from electricity & appliances    

• Switch appliances off at the power point
• Switch to low Watt TV’s and switch them off when you are not watching
• Switch computers and equipment off when they are not in use. Also, adjusting a computer screen’s brightness lower can cut greenhouse emissions by a quarter.
• Choose energy efficient models when buying new equipment. Get rid of old, polluting equipment (e.g. leaking fridges and inefficient washing machines)
• There is no need to rinse dishes under hot water before putting them into the dishwasher. This can actually use more hot water that the dishwasher itself!
• Wash clothes in cold water when possible
• Avoid running washing machines and dishwashers only half-filled
• Use gas and microwave cooking rather than electrical cooking. It produces only 30-50% of the greenhouse gases produced by ordinary electric plates.
• Try cooking larger amounts to freeze and re-heat in the microwave.
• Install energy-efficient lighting indoors and outdoors. We provide energy efficient light bulb installations, including downlights, for a discounted price. Please contact us to register.
• Switch to green power. It is not more expensive than a non-green power plan and reduces your footprint drastically. An online instant comparison of different gas and electricity plans in Australia, including green power, can be found on the Artog website.

Where else to save carbon emissions  

• Cut general product consumption of those products which generate a lot of greenhouse gases such as water, metal, paper, glass and plastic.
• Minimise and recycle waste. Take a bag when you go shopping rather than bringing home new plastic bags.
• If you have a garden, you could set up a worm farm – it saves carbon emissions and produces excellent fertilizer
• Buy local, organic products
• Plan your holidays close to home
• Insulate your house to reduce the heating and cooling energy loads required
• Purchase carbon credits to neutralise your impact on climate change

Support a Low-Carbon Economy:

1. Individuals and businesses can help solve climate change by buying products from LowCO2, NoCO2 or other carbon neutral certified businesses.
2. Organisations and businesses can help solve climate change by becoming carbon neutral certified.
3. Everybody can help building a Low Carbon Economy by reducing carbon emissions at work and at home!

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