Week_6_Personal_Impact_Analysis_Carbon_2023

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American Public University *

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Geography

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Jan 9, 2024

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Greenhouse Gas Calculator: Personal Impacts 1 Carbon Dioxide Calculator Table of Contents: (1.) The Carbon Cycle and Mankind (2.) Activity: Calculating Your Emissions of Carbon Dioxide The Carbon Cycle and Mankind We have seen that plants sequester large sums of carbon in themselves. They are able to do this since, on average, photosynthesis produces more sugar than what is need by the plant during its respiration phase. As long as the plant is alive, it will continue to take carbon dioxide out of the air. However, we also found that a plant will return all of that carbon dioxide back into the atmosphere after it dies if the wood is burned or allowed to decay. In this week's lab, we are going to investigate what effect mankind has on the carbon cycle. In particular, we are going to estimate the amount of carbon dioxide that each one of us is responsible for emitting each year. This analysis is going to study only those day-to-day activities that emit carbon dioxide, and not look at the unique events that we have that also emit carbon dioxide (like bulldozing a forest and grinding up the trees). Our modern way of life relies heavily on the emission of carbon dioxide. When we think about this, we often limit ourselves to the use of automobiles and trucks and a few industrial processes. We understand that when we burn the gasoline in our engines, we are oxidizing the fuel and creating carbon dioxide. However, there are other activities in our life that also emit CO 2 , even though we do not see the oxidation. When we use electricity, we are also emitting carbon dioxide. The majority of the electricity created in the state of Georgia is derived from burning natural gas or coal. We also emit CO 2 when we heat and cool our homes, since this requires the use of electricity or the burning of natural gas, propane, heating oil, or wood. Even our creation of garbage releases carbon dioxide in the environment. If this garbage is put into a landfill, it decays and puts CO 2 back into the atmosphere. If it is recycled, energy of some form will be used to accomplish this, emitting CO 2 in the process. Calculating Your Emissions of Carbon Dioxide Overview So how much carbon dioxide is emitted to the atmosphere through your daily activities? To answer this question, you will use an online Household Carbon Footprint Calculator developed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The calculator sums the carbon dioxide produced by your driving, electricity use, and waste disposal, and provides you with an estimate of your annual carbon dioxide emissions. The calculator then allows you to see how changes in your lifestyle could reduce your carbon dioxide emissions. Before you begin Americans tend to contribute a lot of carbon dioxide through driving, so it is therefore vitally important that you know your vehicle's gas mileage. To assist you, the US Department of Energy and EPA have created a web site that allows users to look up the gas mileage for any
Greenhouse Gas Calculator: Personal Impacts 2 vehicle made from 1985 through the present. Your first step is to determine your vehicle's gas mileage from this site. After entering the year, make, and model of your vehicle, you will be provided with its city and highway gas mileage. For simplicity's sake, assume that half of the miles you drive are highway travel, and the other half are city/suburban travel unless your mileage patterns differ. To obtain a single value for gas mileage, simply use the average of the city and highway mileages listed. Vehicle Fuel Economy Resources Online database of vehicle fuel efficiencies U.S. Department of Energy http://www.fueleconomy.gov/ Activity Complete the Household Carbon Footprint Calculator and enter the appropriate information in the Activity sheet. The use of the calculator is largely self-explanatory, so detailed directions will not be provided. A few comments, though: (1.) In the Transportation section, make sure you select the appropriate time frame (week or year) for your entered mileage. (2.) In the Home Energy section, enter the average of your summer and winter electric and gas bills. Household Carbon Footprint Calculator Allows users to analyze their emissions of CO 2 and learn ways to reduce them U.S. Environmental Protection Agency https://www3.epa.gov/carbon-footprint-calculator/ *Note: If you have trouble loading the page, press the reload button or try a different browser. Let me know if you have any problems with it. The activity sheet will ask you to enter and analyze values from this first run of the calculator, and then use the subsequent section of the calculator to investigate how you can reduce your carbon dioxide emissions. A portion of the activity asks you to consider the change from a conventional vehicle to a more efficient gasoline/electric powered "hybrid" vehicle. To learn more about such vehicles, visit the link below. Hybrid Electric Vehicle Program Information about hybrid vehicles U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Transportation Technologies https://www.afdc.energy.gov/vehicles/electric_basics_hev.html
Greenhouse Gas Calculator: Personal Impacts 1 ESA 21: Environmental Science Activities Activity Sheet Personal Impact Analysis Name: Professor: 1. (15 points) Calculating your total emissions: Enter the values from the Household Carbon Footprint Calculator in the table below and calculate the percent of total emissions for each. ( *Note: If you have trouble loading the page, press the reload button or try a different browser.) Category Lbs. of CO 2 per year Percent of Total Emissions Household Vehicles 0 0 Home Energy – Natural Gas 10,021 .80 Home Energy - Electricity 14,881 44.3 Home Energy - Fuel Oil 0 0 Home Energy - Propane 0 0 Waste – Emissions after Recycling 2624 1.42 Total Annual Emissions 19,332 Analysis: For each question below, fully explain your answer. 2. (15 points) In what category were your emissions highest? Does this surprise you? Why or why not? Please explain fully using at least one paragraph. Home energy-electricity was my highest emissions. D oesn’t really surprise me because 3 people in the household work from home or always home which means more electricity is being used. Also everyone when the house is ethir 3. (15 points) How did your household’s overall emissions compare with the average of 60,000 lbs. per year? Does the magnitude of your emissions surprise you? ? Why or why not? Please explain fully using at least one paragraph.
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