3.2 Web-based footprint calculators
Here is a list of some web-based footprint calculators for you to try out.
The UK government’s official carbon calculator with a highly graphical interface or a Flash version (for broadband only).
WWF’s carbon footprint calculator has a wider scope, bringing in food and ‘stuff’.
Google’s carbon calculator for the UK allows you to plot your footprint on a Google map.
Warwick University has a carbon calculator.
The National Energy Foundation has two carbon calculators, one aimed at consumers wanting to pledge to make reductions and one for conversion calculations from energy and distances: a consumer version with pledges and a simple carbon calculator.
The Carbon Footprint Company is a carbon-offset company that has a carbon calculator.
The Carbon Neutral Company is another carbon-offset company that has a carbon calculator.
JP Morgan ClimateCare is another carbon-offset company that has a carbon calculator, which shows that big financial institutions see a profit in footprinting and carbon offsetting.
Carbon Clear has simple driving and air carbon calculators as part of its carbon-offset product.
Activity 3
Nine UK carbon footprint calculators are listed above, but there are many others. Try to persuade a friend to work through a couple and then compare notes. What features did you like best (or least) about them? Is it better to have a simple, quick calculator or one that includes a lot of additional information as you work through the calculator? And you will find that there are some more calculators still to come …
3 Calculating your carbon footprint