My Carbon Footprint

I have currently used the following sites to calculate my carbon footprint:

1. http://www.carboncounter.org/offset-your-emissions/personal-calculator.aspx

• according to this website I emit 5.3 metric tons of CO2 into the atmosphere
• my emissions were far below the national average
• I was told that I should donate $12 per ton of CO2 to offest my carbon emissions - for me this would be $5.30 a month or $63.60 a year
• in order to estimate my emissions I was asked what type of home I live in, in what state and what size the home is. I answered; apartment, Washington DC and small. I was asked how many cars I drive, which is right now zero, and how many miles I fly a year: about 5.

2. http://www.nature.org/initiatives/climatechange/calculator/

• according to this website I emit 14 tons of carbon a year
• I am below the national average- which this website says for a person in the United States is 27 tons a year and for a person in the world is 5.5 tons a year
• I was asked: how many people in my house- I said 4 because thats the number of people in my suite but then I proceded to calculate the carbon emssions for just myself.
• I was asked what kind of home I live in (small apartment) with how many bedrooms (1) and in what state (DC.) I was also asked if I effiently heat and cool my house, use lighting, and use energy star product to which I answered sometimes and if I used hot water efficiently to which I answered no.
• Next I was asked what kind of car I drove (none) and how many long (2) and short (2)flights I have flown in the last year.
• I was asked how often I eat meat (most days but not every meal) and if I eat organic food (no) and if I recycle (yes... all materials locally recycable) and if I composte waste (no)
• According to this calculator I emit most of my emssions driving or flying or in my home, which is similar to the national trends, however my food and diet is a much larger portion of my energy emission than the emissions of the average American

Some interesting points

• I flew much more this last year than usual, which may have skewed the results of the second survey
• The first survey didn't include diet and I am a huge meat eater which may have an an effect on the results
• Neither survey had a "dorm room" option for home, so my makeshift "small apartment" answer my skew the results
• The second survey was probably more accurate because it asked more questions, and I liked to see how the positive actions such as recycling and using energy star products factored in to my total emissions.