Friday, November 1, 2019

Carbon Footprint Calculations...

Playing around on a Friday afternoon:

London Rome: 234kg CO2
London New York: 986kg CO2
(But that does not include a ~1.8 "effective" multiplier due to releasing CO2 high in the atmosphere)

The weight of CO2 is greater than the weight of fuel due to adding 02 from the atmosphere.
1 gallon Diesel: 10.17kg CO2
1 gallon Gasoline: 8.63kg CO2

15,000 miles per year / 20mpg = 750 gallons per year
750 gallons per year * 8.63kg = 6,472kg CO2

Massachusetts average heating oil usage:
719 gallons x 10.17 kg/gal = 7312kg CO2

Average household size, 2018: 2.53

My house, Oct-May heating season actual usage: 4,168kWh above baseline most of which can safely assumed to be the air source heat pump.

EIA Statistics: 2017 Connecticut Electricity production produces 501lbs CO2 /MWh

(501 / 2.2) / 1000kWh
227kg / 1000kWh
.227kg / kWh

946kg...which is 1/8th the average heating carbon footprint.

Also:

Polypropylene needs at least 11 re-uses (and are largely imported due to the extra labor of weaving; I'm not sure that the labor + transport was accounted for) and a cotton bag needs 135 re-uses. I suspect nylon would be in-between.
https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2016/09/to-tote-or-note-to-tote/498557/

https://digitalcommons.morris.umn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1002&context=urs_2017

https://medium.com/stanford-magazine/paper-plastic-or-reusable-cloth-which-kind-of-bag-should-i-use-c4039575f3f1

At 0.02kg CO2, a disposable plastic bag there are 431 plastic bags per gallon of gasoline or 300' of travel in the average American car.

More:
https://cascade.uoregon.edu/fall2012/expert/expert-article/

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