Comparing Carbon Footprint of Reusable Nalgene Water Bottles to Single

One of the greatest problems facing humanity is global climate change. Global climate change is the increase in average global temperature, caused by an increase in greenhouse gases. Greenhouse gases are the blanket of gases surrounding the earth that allow the world to be inhabitable. This layer of water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, and other gases works in the same way that a greenhouse does, by trapping heat energy inside the atmosphere. Unfortunately, since the Industrial Revolution, people have released more of these gases into the atmosphere, thickening the blanketing layer. This thicker layer traps more heat, leading to dramatic changes in the earth's climate. In order to reduce to potential climate change, the amount of greenhouse gases being released need to be reduced. One starting point to reducing the amount of greenhouse gases that you release is to find your carbon footprint. The carbon footprint is the total amount of greenhouse gases that is emitted over the full life of a process. Although it is called the carbon footprint, it is a measure of the total greenhouse gases released, converted to the equivalent amount of CO2. This number is not completely accurate, but it is a good estimate of the amount of CO2 released into the atmosphere through our activities. Once you have found your personal carbon footprint, you can begin to work to reduce it. One way to reduce your carbon footprint is to look closely at each product you use, and find a more carbon efficient version. This paper can help you with that. In this paper, you will find a comparison of the carbon footprint o... ...s&oldid=228960982 Pacific Institute (2008). Bottled Water and Energy: A Fact Sheet. Retrieved July 31, 2008, Web site: http://www.pacinst.org/topics/water_and_sustainability/bottled_water/bottled_water_and_energy.html Pimental, David & Marcia. "Energy use in food processing for nutrition and development." Retrieved July 31, 2008, from http://www.unu.edu/unupress/food/8f072e/8f072e06.htm Neustaedter, Randall (7/18/2004). Plastic Water Bottles. Retrieved July 31, 2008, from Holistic Pediatric Association Web site: http://www.hpakids.org/holistic-health/articles/108/1/Plastic-Water-Bottles Images http://jamaicaplainforum.org/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/low-carbon-diet-earth.jpg http://archives.zinester.com/13183/128920/202817_global-warming%20(Small).jpg http://www.martin-waugh.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/08/water-drop-1b.jpg http://www.nalgene.com