Carbon Dioxide Calculator

This version 2 of the calculator was superseded Mar 2008.

Complete this questionnaire to estimate / calculate your CO2 emissions.

Either do a quick estimation (no bills etc needed) or a more accurate calculation of the total carbon dioxide emissions that you are responsible for, as an individual, over a 12 month period.

In section 1, you enter household data, so that items such as household heating and car use are shared between the members of your household.
In section 2, you enter personal lifestyle and travel choices that apply to you as an individual.

Section 1 (household)
q1. How many people are there in your household?
Notes:
This is needed for sharing out your gas, electricity and car use between the members of your household.

You can enter a decimal, e.g. 3.5, if you have a family member who is away from home for part of the year.
more ...
q2. How much electricity is used in your household?
Select one option:
Small house / flat (1,700 kWh)
Medium (3,300 kWh)
Large house (5,000 kWh)

Enter actual amount used from your bills

Latest reading (kWh)
Reading 12 months before
Tick the box if your electricity comes from a renewable source (your CO2 emission is reduced to 10%)
 
kWh
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Notes:
Electricity use is measured in kilowatt-hours (abbreviated to kWh).

To make an accurate calculation, you need to find your latest bill and the reading (in kWh) at the end of the last quarter.
Then find the bill 12 months before it and the corresponding reading.
q3. How much gas is used in your household?
Select one option:
Small house / flat (10,000 kWh)
Medium (20,000 kWh)
Large house (28,000 kWh)

Enter actual kWh used
Amount (kWh)
Calculate amount used from your bills
Select how your gas is measured:
Cubic metres (newer meters)
100's of cubic feet (older meters)
Latest meter reading
Reading 12 months before
Difference
kWh used

kWh
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Notes:
Gas consumption is generally measured in units of volume, and this is converted on gas bills into units of energy i.e. kilowatt-hours (kWh) - see Sources page.

To make an accurate calculation of the CO2 generated, you can enter the annual kWh used (if you know this), or you can calculate it from your bills.

To calculate from your bills, first select how your gas is measured. If your bills don't say what the units are, you can probably find the units on the meter. Recently installed meters measure gas in cubic metres (m3), but older meters measure in hundreds of cubic feet - or you may have the kWh already calculated.

Enter the meter reading at the end of the last quarter from the latest bill and then the reading from 12 months before.


q4. How many cars are used by your household?
Select one option:
0     1     2     3     4

Car 1
Select car size:
Small car (45 mpg)
Medium car (35 mpg)
Large car (25 mpg)
Enter actual mpg:
Select 12-month car mileage:
Low (6,000 miles)
Average (9,000 miles)
High (12,000 miles)
Enter actual milage:

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Car 2
Select car size:
Small car (45 mpg)
Medium car (35 mpg)
Large car (25 mpg)
Enter actual mpg:
Select 12-month car mileage:
Low (6,000 miles)
Average (9,000 miles)
High (12,000 miles)
Enter actual milage:

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Car 3
Select car size:
Small car (45 mpg)
Medium car (35 mpg)
Large car (25 mpg)
Enter actual mpg:
Select 12-month car mileage:
Low (6,000 miles)
Average (9,000 miles)
High (12,000 miles)
Enter actual milage:

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Car 4
Select car size:
Small car (45 mpg)
Medium car (35 mpg)
Large car (25 mpg)
Enter actual mpg:
Select 12-month car mileage:
Low (6,000 miles)
Average (9,000 miles)
High (12,000 miles)
Enter actual milage:

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Notes:
If you know the fuel consumption accurately, enter it in the appropriate box.
(You can obtain official fuel consumption figures from http://www.vcacarfueldata.org.uk/search/search.asp.  We suggest you take the 'Imperial Combined'  figure after selecting 'More Info...'.)

To work out your annual mileage:
  • If you have owned the car from new, divide the total mileage by the number of years
  • For an older car, you can take the difference between the mileage shown on your last two MOT certificates.
Section 2 (personal)
q5. Food

How much meat do you eat personally?
Select one option:
Above-average meat-eater
Average meat-eater
Below-average meat-eater
Lacto-vegetarian
Vegan

Do you personally eat organic / local produced food?
Select one option:
Average UK
Partly organic / locally produced
Mostly organic / locally produced
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Notes:
q6. Miscellaneous personal lifestyle choices:

What is your overall spending?
Above-average
Average
Below-average
Do you compost kitchen and garden waste?
No
Yes
Do you recycle paper, glass and metal?
No
Yes
Do you recycle plastic apart from bags?
No
Yes
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Notes:
Your miscellaneous spending is spending on clothing, house construction, furnishings, etc
q7. Health, education, etc :

Which country do you live in?
UK
Other
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Notes:
Carbon dioxide is generated by the health service, schools, social services, the armed forces and so on .

This amounts to 1.1 tonnes per person per year for the UK.

You have no direct control over this amount, which is generated on your behalf, but you can join campaigns to make public services more energy efficient, especially if you work within one of them.
q8. Journeys by bus
Enter the number of miles travelled in the last year and select 'Calculate':


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Notes:
q9. Journeys by train
Enter the number of miles travelled in the last year and select 'Calculate':


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Notes:
q10. Flights:

Any flights between UK airports?
No     Yes
Enter the number of hours spent flying:


Any flights to Europe and/or Africa?
No     Yes
Enter the number of return flights:
Ireland, N. France, Netherlands
Germany, Denmark
S. France, Switzerland, Italy, Norway
Spain, Croatia, Hungary, Poland
Malta, Sicily, Albania
Madeira, Canaries, Morocco, Bulgaria, Greece, Moscow
Azores, Cyprus, Egypt
Kenya
Zambia
Southern Africa, Mauritius
hours flying

Any flights to North & South America ?
No     Yes
Enter the number of return flights:
New York, Boston
Florida
The Caribbean, The Rockies, Western USA
Central America, Ecuador
Hawaii, Peru, Chile
hours flying

Any flights to Asia & Australasia ?
No     Yes
Enter the number of return flights:
Turkey
Jordan
Pakistan
India
Nepal, Bhutan
Sri Lanka, Thailand, China, Japan
Australia, New Zealand
hours flying
total hours flying
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Notes:
Enter the hours spent on flights within the UK,
then the number of international return trips that you personally made in the last year.

For example, if you went on one return trip with two friends to Spain, enter a "1" in the Spain box.

Your total tonnes CO2



How your total compares to the rest of the world
Your total
World average 4
UK average 10.7
USA 20
Sweden, Switzerland 6.1
China 3.2
India 1.2
Tanzania 0.1
Sustainable 1.5 ?


Notes
The calculator is based around a family household unit, where car travel is done to bring in income for the family or to travel for family leisure, and so CO2 emissions need to be shared between all members of the household. If your circumstances are different, you may need to adapt the calculator, e.g. enter the household size as 1, and share out household electricity and gas before entering it.

Some travel may be carried out as part of your job e.g. international aid workers may have to fly in order to do their jobs effectively. Enter in the calculator just what you choose to do, not what you cannot avoid.

The figure of 1.5 tonnes per year is uncertain - an amount that the world's oceans may be able to absorb. In this sense, it is sustainable - but stores of fossil fuels are finite, and so no emission level is sustainable in the very long term.





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