Lab 3 - Carbon Footprint Lab

GEOG 301: Bay Area Environments Fall 2021

Introduction

Carbon Footprint Lab Due October 12th by 9:30 AM

All living things on Earth are made of carbon. Carbon is abundant on our planet, it’s part of our oceans, our air, and our rocks. The carbon cycle refers to the constant flux of carbon from one place to another, and comprises one sequence of events that are key to making Earth a sustainable place for life.

Carbon dioxide (CO2) is an important component of photosynthesis, but is also a strong greenhouse gas. Greenhouse gases trap solar energy in our atmosphere, which is heating up our planet. Without greenhouse gases, Earth would be a frozen world, but humans are drastically accelerating the contribution of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Since the beginning of the industrial revolution, roughly 150 years ago, CO2 concentrations have increased by about 30%.

All humans contribute to greenhouse gas emissions, whether we drive a car, turn on lights at home, or cut down trees for firewood. Individual CO2 emissions are called a carbon footprint. By reducing our carbon footprint we can save energy and money, and help sustain Earth for generations to come!

Activity Summary Before thinking about efficient ways to reduce our impact on the planet, we need to know how much our different behaviors impact our carbon footprint. This activity looks at four different areas that contribute to our carbon footprint: transportation, home energy and appliances, food, and personal purchases. We’ll use a carbon footprint calculator developed by Stanford University to quantify how much each of these areas contribute to our own carbon footprint. Completing all the questions in the carbon footprint calculator will take 30–60 minutes.

1. Go to the International Student Carbon Footprint Challenge

(https://depts.washington.edu/i2sea/?page=iscfc), select the “Calculate” option from the ribbon at the top of the page, and then choose the “Advanced Calculator” option from the next screen. From the Introduction screen select the “Explore” option so you can proceed without having to create a user account. Enter your First and Last Name, select which country you live in, select the “Advanced” option once again, and click “Explore.” If you are from another country, you’re welcome to enter the United States or your home country. If you select the United States, it will also ask for which state. You can choose California or your home state (maybe try both and see the difference). NOTE: you do NOT need to register to use the carbon footprint calculator, but registering allows you to save your progress and complete the questions at a later time.

GEOG 301: Bay Area Environments Fall 2021

2. Once you’ve entered your name and where you live, click the next arrow (Fig. 1)

Figure 1: Introduction page of the carbon footprint calculator

3. The next page asks you to hypothesize about your carbon footprint compared to the country and world averages. After completing each page, click the next arrow until you’ve completed your carbon footprint in each category: transportation, home energy and appliances, food, and personal purchases.

4. The questions use the metric system (kilometers, kilograms, centigrade, liters, etc.). You can use the converter (Fig. 2) to change units, e.g. miles to kilometers.

Figure 2: Unit converter button

5. Transportation is divided into: going out with friends locally, shopping locally, travelling via airplane, and non-local travelling via bus, train, or car. If

Unit converter

Next Arrow

GEOG 301: Bay Area Environments Fall 2021

you fly home for the holidays, then fly back to the Bay Area, that counts as 2 flights. The questionnaire asks details about each flight, including time travelled or distance travelled, and the number of layovers, or stops you make along the way to get to your final destination.

6. Home Energy and Appliances has numerous categories, some of which you may not know, so make your best estimate, e.g. number of light bulbs.

7. Food asks about number of meals eating vegetarian, chicken/fish, beef, and pork. Assuming you eat 3 meals a day, the total for all combined should be 21 meals/week.

8. Answer as accurately as possible in the Personal Purchases category. Don’t be ashamed if you’re a shopaholic!

9. You’re done! Is your carbon footprint high? Compare your totals to the totals from your region. Do you think your carbon footprint leads to a sustainable future?

Deliverable Your final deliverable is to write a lab report following the scientific lab report format we have been using all semester (see the Rubric on the next page for the exact formatting specifications). For the Discussion section of your lab report, provide the answers to the next 6 questions:

1. Do you have any idea why you need to select the country? Do you know how your location can impact your carbon footprint?

2. Explain why your results for each category (transportation, home energy, food, and personal purchases) were low, average, or high? For example: My food category is high because I eat beef every day, but my home energy use is low because I never shower.

3. Which category contributes the most CO2 emissions, and explain why? For example: Transportation is my largest contributor to CO2 emissions because I live in Denver and I fly to San Francisco for work every day.

4. What actions (if any) are you REALLY ready to take in order to decrease your carbon footprint in each category? You can go back through the calculator and adjust your answers to see how big a difference the change will make. Figure 3 shows the navigation index that allows you to adjust each question.

Navigation Index Button

Figure 3: Use the navigation index to adjust your answers

GEOG 301: Bay Area Environments Fall 2021

5. If you could make recommendations to your city officials, what alternatives would you recommend for greener, more sustainable policies that the local community could promote?

6. What can students in your school do to alleviate the school’s collective carbon footprint?

Rubric

I. Introduction (4 points) • Address the topic & introduce the Carbon Footprint

Calculator (1 pt) • Motivation for doing this lab (carbon emissions, climate

change, Bay Area sustainability issues) and background research (2 pts)

• Hypothesis – what are your expected results? Will your CO2 footprint be higher or lower than regional average (i.e. California)? (1 pt)

II. Methods (2 points) • Describe the Carbon Footprint Calculator: What is it? How did

you access it? What are the four categories that you had to provide answers for? (2 pts)

III. Results (2 points) • What is the total amount of CO2, in kgs, released because of your…

o Transportation: kgs o Home energy & appliances: kgs o Food: kgs o Personal purchases: kgs

IV. Discussion (8 points) • Discuss why you need to select the country. Do you know how

your location can impact your carbon footprint? (Question 1 from Deliverable section) (2 pt)

• Explain your results (Questions 2 & 3 above) (2 pts) • How do your results relate to your hypothesis? (1 pt) • Describe what actions (if any) are you REALLY ready to take in

order to decrease your carbon footprint in each category? (Question 4) (2 pts)

• Make recommendations to city officials and your fellow students for reducing their CO2 footprint (Questions 5 & 6). (1 pt)

V. Conclusion (2 points) • Readdresses the overall topic & it’s importance (1 pt) • Summarizes main points of your project (1 pt)

VI. Mechanics (2 points) • Spelling, grammar & punctuation (1 pt) • Proper formatting (headers for each report section) (1 pt)

TOTAL POINTS AVAILABLE: 20