June is Green Month
We got together again with Pirate FM to celebrate
'Green Month' during June 2023
Cornwall’s carbon footprint is four million tonnes and needs to be seven times smaller to help Cornwall become carbon neutral. Every single person has a part to play in helping reduce that number.
Being Carbon Neutral means we don't create more carbon than the planet naturally absorbs. Too much carbon in the atmosphere contributes to Climate Change, which is already causing issues across the globe.
Where do our Carbon Emissions come from?
Most of Cornwall's carbon emissions come from road transport (23%), commercial and industrial buildings (22%), our homes (22%) and agriculture (21%). With the remainder coming from our waste, industrial processes, aviation and rail transport and marine navigation.
Cornwall’s carbon footprint is shrinking by about 2% a year and needs to shrink by 10% a year. So as well as everything that is already being done, there's still more that we need to do.
- 1 tonne of carbon = 4 double decker buses
- Cornwall’s carbon footprint is 4 million tonnes = 16 million double deckers!
- The average person has a 13 tonne carbon lifestyle = 52 double deckers
- The ideal carbon lifestyle is 5 tonnes = 20 double deckers.
Image: Carbon Visuals http://www.carbonvisuals.com
So what can we do?
The good news is, there's a lot we can do individually. Every single change will help get us get Cornwall closer to Carbon Neutrality.
Individuals can make a start by finding out what your carbon footprint is and how you can reduce it, with the WWF environmental footprint calculator
Businesses can access a range of ideas on what they can do. Ideas for general actions to take, or actions targeted to specific types of business can be found at the UK SME Climate Hub. If you want to understand the level of your emissions and to work out what actions to prioritise to make both reductions in carbon emissions and cost savings, the Carbon Trust Energy Management Self-assessment tools is a good place to start. The Carbon Trust Emissions Calculator can be used to review your energy, transport and process emissions.
Community groups can use the IMPACT Community scale carbon calculator to develop a visual representation of your community's carbon footprint. The calculator can help you to spot the areas where your community climate change activities can make the biggest difference: https://impact-tool.org.uk/
Where to start?
Sometimes it's easier to focus on one thing and then add to your changes as that becomes habit.
Start small and grow, for example you could...
- Try to take public transport, walk or cycle more instead of taking the car for journeys under three miles
- Switch your electricity and heating to a company that produces or uses only green energy and turn your thermostat down by one degree
- Shop locally for your food
- Mend things instead of throwing them away and keeping equipment, like your phone, for longer.
Young people in Truro and Penwith Colleges and Cornwall's Eco Schools worked together to produce their own pledges for the planet.
The Imperial College London together with the Grantham Institute have drawn up a list of nine things you can do about Climate Change
Each of the pledges and lists above has a range of changes you can make - what will you choose, can you manage one or two or all of them?
More ideas
Take a look at our Green Month ideas below for suggestions on how you can help Climate Change every day and not just during June!
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11 June: Become a local active travel champion
Share 11 June: Become a local active travel champion on Facebook Share 11 June: Become a local active travel champion on Twitter Share 11 June: Become a local active travel champion on Linkedin Email 11 June: Become a local active travel champion linkBecome a local active travel champion student, parent, teacher or school
Many families have recently been enjoying walking, running, scooting and cycling as part of their new daily routine and here at Active Cornwall we want to encourage families in Cornwall to keep this going as they head back to school.
Active Cornwall are calling for teachers, parents and carers to 'Make a Pledge' to increase their own amount of active travel or that of its school, however small.
Become a local Cornwall Active Travel Champion and help us spread the word within your community:
Active Travel for Education - Active Cornwall
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12 June: Help grow nature
Share 12 June: Help grow nature on Facebook Share 12 June: Help grow nature on Twitter Share 12 June: Help grow nature on Linkedin Email 12 June: Help grow nature linkIf you need some inspiration on how you can support nature in Cornwall, head on over to Grow Nature.
Get inspiration and funding through our Grow Nature Toolkit and Grow Nature Seed Fund. https://www.cornwall.gov.uk/grow-nature
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13 June: Become a Beach Guardian
Share 13 June: Become a Beach Guardian on Facebook Share 13 June: Become a Beach Guardian on Twitter Share 13 June: Become a Beach Guardian on Linkedin Email 13 June: Become a Beach Guardian linkBecome a Beach Guardian and take part in beach cleans and help our oceans and marine life
The Beach Guardians organise community beach cleans and conduct educational workshops with schools and other groups to connect people with the environment to improve health and wellbeing of both people and planet.
Give some of your time and spend a few hours on the beach helping to clear up plastic waste and litter.Take time to care for the environment and yourself: Beach Guardian
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14 June: Visit the SW Climate Change Centre
Share 14 June: Visit the SW Climate Change Centre on Facebook Share 14 June: Visit the SW Climate Change Centre on Twitter Share 14 June: Visit the SW Climate Change Centre on Linkedin Email 14 June: Visit the SW Climate Change Centre linkThe new SW Climate Change Centre at Heartlands is now open.
The South West Climate Change Centre is an interactive exhibition at the Heartlands visitor attraction and World Heritage Site, in Pool Cornwall.
The Centre is open to all from 9.30am to 4.30pm every weekday, except bank holidays, and is free to visit.
Visit the SW Climate Change Centre to see the interactive Tardis-style console and 4D film, that shows what could happen if we don’t act fast enough: https://letstalk.cornwall.gov.uk/swccc
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15 June: Repair don't throw away
Share 15 June: Repair don't throw away on Facebook Share 15 June: Repair don't throw away on Twitter Share 15 June: Repair don't throw away on Linkedin Email 15 June: Repair don't throw away linkInstead of throwing items away, you can get them repaired and learn a new skill at the same time
There are a growing number of Repair Cafes in Cornwall, and the Repair Cafe Network can help volunteers set up new cafes. The network also lists all the repair cafes that are running.
Find out more about Repair Cafes:
https://www.cornwall.gov.uk/rubbish-recycling-and-waste/recycling/repair-cafes/
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16 June: Choose to Reuse
Share 16 June: Choose to Reuse on Facebook Share 16 June: Choose to Reuse on Twitter Share 16 June: Choose to Reuse on Linkedin Email 16 June: Choose to Reuse link16 June is World Refill Day
As a global movement, we have the power to create a wave of change.
By choosing to reuse, we’re saving millions of pieces of plastic and sending a message to the rest of the world that the solutions to plastic pollution and the climate crisis are there.
Together we can keep our environment, oceans, cities and communities plastic-free for the future.
https://www.refill.org.uk/world-refill-day/
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18 June: Get Recycling
Share 18 June: Get Recycling on Facebook Share 18 June: Get Recycling on Twitter Share 18 June: Get Recycling on Linkedin Email 18 June: Get Recycling linkIf you're not sure what you can recycle, visit the new searchable A-Z of recycling - it’s a quick and easy way to find out what you can recycle and how, and which recycling container to put it in.
Visit the 'Recycling collections' page of Cornwall Council’s website, where you can find out how to order more recycling equipment, what happens to recycling collected in Cornwall, ways to cut down on waste.
Recycling collections - Cornwall Council
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19 June: Get funding for your climate change or nature recovery project
Share 19 June: Get funding for your climate change or nature recovery project on Facebook Share 19 June: Get funding for your climate change or nature recovery project on Twitter Share 19 June: Get funding for your climate change or nature recovery project on Linkedin Email 19 June: Get funding for your climate change or nature recovery project linkCrowdfunder and Cornwall Council have come together to support projects and activities that will help Cornwall tackle and respond to climate change and promote nature recovery.
They want to inspire and back projects that support Cornwall Council’s climate and ecological emergency response. Their ambition is for a carbon neutral Cornwall where 30% of our land, rivers and seas are positively managed for nature by 2030
If your idea or project meets the criteria you can apply for a grant to match fund up to 50% of costs, up to £5,000 - although for exceptional projects up to £15,000: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/funds/cornwall-climate-nature
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20 June: Save energy
Share 20 June: Save energy on Facebook Share 20 June: Save energy on Twitter Share 20 June: Save energy on Linkedin Email 20 June: Save energy linkSave energy. Save money. Lower your carbon emissions
With energy prices going up all the time, it's a great time to think about cutting down on the energy we use, to save on the cost of our bills as well.
Find out how you can make some simple practical changes to help save energy, save money and lower your carbon emissions
For more information on how to get energy smart visit https://letstalk.cornwall.gov.uk/save-energy
