Jonathan Harrington - The Climate Diet: How You Can Cut Carbon, Cut Costs and Save the Planet

How You Can Cut Carbon, Cut Costs, and Save the Planet

Jonathan Harrington

publishing for a sustainable future

London Sterling, VA

First Published by Earthscan in the UK and USA in 2008

Copyright Jonathan Henry Harrington, 2008

All Rights Reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any mannerwhatsoever without written permission from the publisher except in the case of briefquotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

ISBN: 978-1-84407-533-1

Typeset by Safehouse Creative
Printed and bound by The Maple-Vail Book Manufacturing Group, York,Pennsylvania, USA
Illustrations by Dan Bramall
Cover design by Rob Watts

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Earthscan publishes in association with the International Institute for Environmentand Development

A catalog record for this book is available from the British Library.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Harrington, Jonathan Henry, 1964

The climate diet : how you can cut carbon, cut costs and save the planet /Jonathan Harrington.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.ISBN-13: 978-1-84407-533-1 (pbk.)

1. Climatic changes. 2. Global warmingPrevention. 3. Carbon dioxideEnvironmental aspects. 4. Greenhouse gasesEnvironmental apsects. I.Title.

QC981.8.C5H2567 2008640dc22

2008003018

This book has been printed on paper that is 30% recycled from post-consumer wasteusing vegetable-based inks.

For Kela

So she too may have an opportunity to enjoy the rich bounty of our Mother Earth

List of Acronyms and Abbreviations viiList of Tables xAcknowledgments xiiPreface xiii

Chapter One Cool Strategies for a Warming World

Chapter Two Ten Good Reasons to Go On a Climate Diet

Chapter Three Going for the Gold: The Nuts and Volts of Climate Diet Success

Chapter Four Less Is More: Creating aClimate Diet Home

Chapter Five Finding the Right Balance: Heating, Cooling, and Outside Spaces

Chapter Six Shopping, Eating, Recycling, and More

Chapter Seven Hit the Road the Climatewise Way

Chapter Eight Community Strategies for a Better Climate

Chapter Nine Putting It All Together: Your Climate Diet Results

Chapter Ten Epilogue: Our LifestyleHer Life

Appendices

Appendix A More on the Science of Climate Change Appendix B Sample Climate Diet Worksheet Appendix C International Energy and Price Data for Selected Countries (2007)

Appendix D Energy and Emissions Data by State/Province (USA, Canada, and Australia, 2005)

Appendix E(a)- E(e) Detailed Energy-Use Characteristics by Product/Item

Appendix F CO2e Emissions Associated with Farming and Animal Husbandry

References | About the Author | Index

ATV all terrain vehicle
bpd barrels per day
Btu British thermal unit
C Celsius
CFL compact fluorescent lampCH4 methane
cm centimeter

CO2 carbon dioxide
CO2e carbon dioxide equivalentcu ft cubic feet

E-85 85% ethanol/15% gasoline fuel
EC European Commission
EER energy-efficient ratio
EIA Energy Information Administration
EPA Environmental Protection Agency (USA)

EU European Union
F Fahrenheit
g gram
gal gallon
GHG greenhouse gas
gpm gallons per minute
hp horsepower
IEA International Energy Agency
IPCC Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
IISD International Institute for Sustainable Developmentkg kilogram
km kilometer
km/h kilometers per hour
kWh kilowatt hour
lb pound/pounds (U.S.)

LCD liquid crystal display
LED light-emitting diode
LEED Leadership in Energy and Environmental DesignL/m liter per minute
m meter

List of Acronyms and Abbreviations

IX

mi mile
mpg miles per gallonmph miles per hourN2O nitrous oxide

NOAA National Oceanic and Atmospheric AdministrationPC per capita
ppm parts per million
SEER seasonal energy-efficient ratio
sq ft square feet
sq m square meters
TCO total cost of ownership
UK United Kingdom

U.S. United States
W watt

3.1 Lightbulb Example 33
3.2 Summary of the Information You Need for Your Climate Diet 34

3.3 Mercer Island Example 34
3.4 Sample GHG Factor and Electricity Cost Data for Selected Countries 36

4.1 Bedroom 1/Kids Room 46
4.2 Bedroom 2/Master Suite 47
4.3 Bedroom 3/Home Office 49
4.4 Living/Dining Zone 52
4.5 Kitchen Zone 54
4.6 Bathrooms Zone 58
4.7 Laundry/Utility Zone 61
5.1 International City Climate Comparisons 70
5.2 Heating Zone Options 72
5.3 Air-Conditioning Zone 74
5.4 Yard Zone 77
6.1 Embedded Fossil Fuels: A Mercer Island

Example 86

6.2 Food Consumption and GHG Emissions 89
6.3 Tale of Two Meals 90
6.4 Waste Disposal and Recycling 92
6.5 What You Can Compost 94
7.1 Comparative Financial and Environmental

Costs of Private Vehicles (2007) 108

7.2 True Cost to Own a 2007 Volvo 110
7.3a Transportation Zone Worksheet (U.S. miles) 113
7.3b Transportation Zone Worksheet (metric) 114
7.4 Environmental Effects of Air Travel 116
8.1 List of Major Environmental Organizations 128
8.2 Weekly Per Capita Gasoline and Diesel Use
in the Northwest: 1990 and 2004 131

8.3 Urban Sprawl in Selected Cities: 1990 and 2000 131
9.1 How Did You Do? CO2 Emissions 144
9.2 How Did You Do? Cost 145

List of Tables

XI

Appendix A.1 Projected Temperature Changes for

Various IPCC Scenarios 162Appendix A.2 Temperature Variations 1990s and 2090s

in Selected North American Cities 162Appendix B.1 Currentwhere you are 164Appendix B.2 Futurewhere you want to be 165Appendix C International Energy and Price Data:

Selected Countries (2007) 166Appendix D Energy Data by State/Province

(USA, Canada, and Australia) 167Appendix E(a) Detailed Energy-Use Characteristics by

Product/Item 169Appendix E(b) Detailed Energy-Use Characteristics by

Product/Item 170Appendix E(c) Detailed Energy-Use Characteristics by

Product/Item 171Appendix E(d) Detailed Energy-Use Characteristics by

Product/Item 172Appendix E(e) Detailed Energy-Use Characteristics by

Product/Item 173Appendix F CO2e Emissions Associated with Farming

and Animal Husbandry 174

First of all, I would like to thank my aunt and uncle, Belden and LisaPaulson, for allowing me to vicariously participate in their decades-long crusade to save the planet. Their hard work and vision hasaffected the lives of thousands of people. I would like to thank myparents, Mary Paulson and Gordon Harrington, for giving me the
gift of education that has allowed me to contribute to public debatesabout environmental politics and policy. Special thanks to my wife,Kathy, who taught me to walk more softly on the planet, throughactions not words, and to rein in the disease of affluenza that infectsmodern society. I certainly could not have reached this point withoutmy editor, Rob West, who believed in this project from beginning toend and pushed me to persevere though months of rewrites. Manypeople and organizations provided helpful comments and materialassistance during the course of this project, including the Wunderkidsat Verve Editorial, Northwest Avalanche Center, Ted and Bunny Belden,Stylus Publishing marketing staff, Mary Ann Acosta, the University ofWashington Puget Sound Action Team staff, Dr. Ken Stiles, Dr. PaulHarris, David Lagerman, Waverly Fitzgerald, and all of my global-warming-doubting graduate students who challenged me to defend