A new project is under way to estimate the total carbon footprint of Keswick.
It is being run by Sustainable Keswick, which is inviting as many householders and small or medium business owners as possible to take part.
The carbon footprint of a household or a business is an estimate of all the carbon emissions generated by what people do or buy. It includes carbon dioxide emitted travelling by car, train and so on, by heating homes and using electricity and water, and from every purchase such as food, clothes and gadgets.
Sustainable Keswick has teamed up with Cumbria Action for Sustainability (CAfS) to use a new carbon footprint calculator for households and for small and medium-sized businesses. It has been developed by CAfS in partnership with Ambleside Action for a Future (AAFAF).
The foot-printing tool can be found on the CAfS website and is free to use. There have also been two webinars; one for householders and one for businesses, which go through the tool in detail.
Jo Alberti, of Sustainable Keswick, attended one of the webinars and said: “The presentation was clear and the atmosphere open and encouraging, making me want to participate.”
Anyone running a business or living in Keswick wanting to know more can attend Sustainable Keswick’s Green Get-Together on May 10 at 6pm via Zoom.
Those who have already worked out their household or business carbon footprint for 2020 can find out what results others are getting.
Sustainable Keswick is inviting everyone to spread the word as the more people who use the tool, the more accurate its total for Keswick will be.
The footprint tool allows users to record their footprint for 2020 and for four years after so the group can see if Keswick is reducing its footprint.
Sustainable Keswick is running other projects to help do that, including one to map roofs which are suitable for PV (solar) panels.
