Ten simple ways we can all help save the planet

Published on Tuesday 8 January 2008 21:17

THE Scotsman joins forces with Natural Scotland on a campaign to promote greener lifestyles. Click below if you want to join in.

There is a need to change the way we live in order to fulfil the requirements of the fight against climate change. Scientists and politicians across the world are in almost unanimous agreement that the time for argument is over.

Unless humanity takes steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the world will be hit by famine, drought, floods, storms of increasing intensity and rising sea levels. How bad this will be and when it will strike may be uncertain, but a worst-case scenario would result in vast tracts of the planet becoming uninhabitable, prompting mass migrations towards the poles and wars over territory.

Many climate scientists believe we have about ten years to start reducing greenhouse gas emissions or face dangerous global warming as the planet's average temperature rises 2C above the pre-industrial figure.

The new campaign centres around ten pledges designed to help people get involved in reducing their carbon emissions: advertisements for the campaign appear throughout today's newspaper.

The Scotsman is working with the Scottish Government to push the message in forthcoming weeks. Stories will appear under the campaign logo "Let's Go Green Together", because there is a vital third party in this initiative – the people of Scotland.

The campaign asks as many people as possible to adopt some or all of the ten pledges printed on this page.

Together, enough of us can make a difference – one person recycling a glass bottle would save the energy required to power a television for an hour and a half.

BY ITSELF, that would be insignificant in the fight against climate change, but it is estimated that if every person in the country joined in the campaign, we could cut our energy use by as much as 40 per cent.

The Scotsman and the Scottish Government have set up websites to record people's pledges to join the campaign. These names will be printed in The Scotsman over the coming months.

Alex Salmond, the First Minister, said: "Climate change is a challenge for us all. Here in Scotland, we have an abundance of natural resources and massive renewable energy potential.

"We have a vast future as a green energy powerhouse for Europe, and we must now think big about how to bring it into being.

"At the same time, however, we each have an individual role to play. The decisions we make in our daily lives have a significance that should not be underestimated, and I'd encourage everyone to make one or more pledges in 2008."

Today, The Scotsman's masthead is printed in green – only the second time in its history it has been changed in support of a campaign – the other was publication of The Scotswoman in the 1990s. Mike Gilson, the Editor, said: "I think many people now believe we need to take steps to address the threat posed by global warming but are uncertain about what to do, how they can really make a difference.

"The ten pledges provide a manifesto for change that we can all at least aspire to. Some are harder than others, but if everyone in Scotland was to fulfil at least one pledge, that would make a real difference.

"The important thing is for everyone to try, to do their best, and no-one should be put off if they feel able to do only a few of the pledges.

"There may be some people who are doing all of them already, but the Scottish Government should be praised for promoting them in an attempt to make this a real mass movement."

He went on: "The change of our masthead's colour is a sign of how seriously this newspaper takes this issue. It is time for the people of Scotland to pull together and say with one voice 'Let's go green'."

Global warming might seem a distant threat to some in Scotland, but today we highlight the plight of the Cook Islands in the South Pacific, where there have been dramatic increases in storms and hurricanes, associated with rising sea temperatures.

PEOPLE there fear islands will become uninhabitable, and last month's United Nations climate change conference in Bali heard the country's representative speak movingly to the assembled world delegates, saying the islanders were "asking for our survival, nothing more, nothing less".

The Cook Islands may be among the first to experience what climate change will bring, and should serve as a warning to the world.

Robin Harper, the Scottish Green MSP, said the world could not wait for governments to solve the problem, but "people power" could make a real difference almost immediately.

"If we wait for governments, it will be too slow," he said "But there are things we can do tomorrow. We could reduce our energy consumption by 40 per cent tomorrow by simply going down the route the government is suggesting. All we need individually is the will to do it."

Duncan McLaren, chief executive of Friends of the Earth Scotland, said: "It is a positive initiative and the government has got to put the sort of effort behind this that it has previously put behind health information campaigns."

Dan Barlow, WWF Scotland's acting director, said: "In Scotland, we use resources and generate pollution as if we had three planets. Given our large ecological footprint and the growing impacts of climate change, there can be no doubt about the scale of the challenge we face and the urgent need for action."

1. Recycle household waste using facilities provided locally.

THE average person in Scotland throws away their own body weight in waste every seven weeks.

The present "throwaway" society means energy and resources must be expended to replace what we get rid of or fail to use.

More than 800 million of food is simply wasted in Scotland each year.

Stopping this would result in a reduction in carbon dioxide emissions equivalent to taking one in four cars off the road.

But even small actions can have a surprisingly large effect – recycling a single glass bottle saves enough energy to power a television for an hour and a half.

It takes only 25 recycled two-litre plastic bottles to make a fleece jacket.

Three-quarters of Scottish homes have access to kerbside recycling, while facilities are now available at most supermarkets, council refuse centres and other locations, providing ample opportunities to do the right thing. wasteawarescotland.org.uk www.sort-it.org.uk

2. Turn the tap off when brushing your teeth.

THE concentration of the population in the Central Belt means most rain does not fall in the areas where water is in most demand.

It is not always possible to move water to the places where it is needed, and doing so takes energy and can damage the environment.

A tap that drips once a second will waste 33 litres of water a day, and over the course of a year would have provided enough water for 446 showers. One of the easiest ways to save water is to get out of the habit of leaving the tap running while brushing your teeth. Putting a plug in, rather than leaving taps running, is another simple step.

Other tips include fitting a water-saving device to the toilet, showers instead of baths and running washing machines and dishwashers with a full load only. Using a watering can for plants and a bucket to wash the car is more efficient than a hose. www.scottishwater.co.uk

3. Switch to using energy-saving light bulbs

LOW-ENERGY light bulbs last up to 15 times longer than standard bulbs and save up to 9 in electricity a year.

Increasing energy efficiency is seen as one of the simplest and most effective ways of cutting our impact on the planet.

If every house in Scotland installed one extra energy-efficient light, the electricity saved could power 23,000 homes for a year.

It is thought that about 30 per cent of people have no energy efficient bulbs in their home.

Traditional bulbs translate just five per cent of incoming energy into light, with much of the rest turned into heat.

However, those resistant to low-energy alternatives will soon have no alternative. Europe, the US and China are all expected to ban incandescents in the next few years.

ban-the-bulb.blogspot.com

www.energysavingtrust.org.uk

4. Leave the car at home at least once a week and cycle, walk, share a car or use public transport more often.

CARS and other vehicles are responsible for nearly a fifth of Scotland's greenhouse gas emissions.

They are expensive – car ownership costs on average 2,200 a year – and emit other gases that affect air quality and health. Nearly half of car journeys are under three miles and, in cities, cycling can be as quick. Taking the bus or train will also reduce emissions compared to driving alone in a car.

Sharing a car, using park-and-ride services and choosing a vehicle with good fuel efficiency are ways of reducing the impact of car journeys.

Regular servicing, not leaving the engine idling too long and driving at a sensible speed, avoiding hard accelerating and braking, also help.

www.sustrans.org.uk

www.travelinescotland.com

www.transportdirect.info

5. Use rechargeable batteries instead of disposable ones.

BATTERIES contain heavy metals which can leak out, causing pollution of the soil and water if they are simply thrown away.

The number of batteries we consume is staggering. Scotland alone uses around 41 million batteries a year, while the figure for the UK is more than 600 million.

Traditional batteries are designed for relatively short-term use and have been thrown away in vast quantities in the past. But even after they are run down, they contain valuable chemicals and metal which could be reused.

A policy of only using rechargeable batteries would dramatically cut such waste and be substantially cheaper.

Scotland recently opened a battery recycling plant in Golspie designed to take lithium-ion batteries, which are rechargeable and used mainly in modern portable devices such as mobile phones. Last year, some 13 tonnes of batteries was recycled.

www.sort-it.org.uk

6. Reuse carrier bags when you shop

THE waste of plastic bags has become a cause clbre within the environmental movement.

The average time a plastic carrier bag is used has been estimated at just 12 minutes, but a typical bag could last several hundred years.

Plastic bags are a major component of household waste and the average home in Scotland produces just over a tonne a year, a figure that is increasing by about two per cent annually.

One of the simplest ways to cut the amount of waste you produce is to reuse old carriers, get a "bag for life" or a traditional shopping bag, or use a rucksack, rather than picking up several new carrier bags for every trip, only to throw them away at home.

adoptabeach.org.uk

abolishplasticbags.org.uk

carbontrust.co.uk

7. Buy more seasonal and unpackaged food

BUYING food out of season means more carbon emissions will have been created in its production or transportation from a favourable climate.

Locally grown fresh vegetables and fruit should have lost fewer of their nutrients than those stored in transit for a longer time.

Excess packaging adds to waste and makes up a significant proportion of rubbish sent to landfill. Avoiding convenience foods that have lots of packaging and buying loose fruit and vegetables can reduce this.

www.fifediet. wordpress.com/flying

wwwscotlandsfootprint.org

8. Hang your washing up to dry rather than using a tumbler dryer

NOT long ago in Scotland, it was rare to find a tumble drier in someone's home.

Today they are among the main household appliances, each year, consuming 1.3 billion-worth of electricity and responsible for more than five million tonnes of carbon dioxide in the UK.

Use a washing line or drying room or, if you must buy a tumble drier, choose one with the Energy Saving Recommended logo, which means it uses less energy, produces fewer emissions and is cheaper to run.

www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/flying

9. Organise or volunteer in an environmental project in your local community.

THIS may sound daunting, but volunteering to do something practical to help the environment can be immensely rewarding.

Carrying out physical work outside is a good way to get fitter. It is also an opportunity to learn more about nature and

can give a sense of satisfaction that you have done something meaningful, helping to repair damage to the land caused by today's society.

Volunteering is also more relaxed than paid workplaces and offers an opportunity to meet like-minded people with an interest in a similar area and learn new skills.

It is thought about 23,340 people currently carry out environmental volunteering in Scotland, completing about 91,000 hours of work a month.

www2.btcv.org.uk/flying

www.scotlink.org/flying

www.csv.org.uk/flying

www.chooseclimate.org/flying

10. Pay back the environmental impact of any flights you take and choose not to fly when there's a suitable alternative.

FLYING from Edinburgh to London creates nearly five times more emissions per passenger than taking the train.

The train journey takes four to five hours while, on paper, the plane will take about an hour. But depending where you live, trains become much more competitive on time, as they take passengers from city centre to city centre and there is no need to arrive more than an hour before take-off.

Taking one less long-haul flight a year could reduce your "ecological footprint" by up to 25 per cent. Off-setting carbon emissions has proved controversial, but the UK government and the United Nations have schemes to ensure firms offering this service honour their pledges and environmentalists generally say this is advisable if flying is essential.

www.chooseclimate.org/flying

HOW TO TAKE PART

ANYONE wanting to take part in the campaign can do so simply by trying to meet as many of the pledges as they can.

But The Scotsman and the Scottish Government are both asking people to sign up online.

This gives an idea how many people are taking part and which of the ten pledges prove popular and which attract less interest.

Those taking part can also explain why they want to join the fight against climate change .

This should help the government change policies to make it easier to go green and the newspaper to highlight issues of concern.

Simply log on to the sites below and follow instructions

&#149 www.scotsman.com/gogreen

&#149 www.infoscotland.com/ourfuture