Australia has the second highest carbon footprint after the U.S. and this reflects our energy hungy lifestyles.

There are a number of ways that we can reduce this carbon footprint and simple things such as changing the type of lights used in the home can make a difference. New products are appearing on the market in recognition of the need to conserve our energy.

Imagine a conventional household of 4 people whose principal heating is electric, has an airconditioner, runs 2 four wheel drives (5000miles per year), does 2 short haul air trips a year and 1 long air trip per year and does not recycle their waste or observe any energy saving habits - their carbon footprint is something like 27 tonnes of CO2 per year.

The average Australian carbon footprint is 14.36 tonnes of CO2 per year.

Consider someone whose power is generated by solar power, who heats their home with wood, no airconditioning, observes all the good habits of conserving energy in the home, drives one standard sedan 5000 miles per year - their carbon footprint is something like 5 tonnes per year.

The prosecution rests it's case M'lud!

The Carbon Footprint Calculator is brought to you by BP Alternative Energy and the website is well worth a look. Using their interactive calculator tool you can get a pretty good idea of what your carbon footprint is and how you can take steps to reduce it. The results may surprise you.

Click on the link on the sidebar to access the calculator.