Listening to the arguments about climate change, it can sometimes feel we’re simply doomed – but in reality, even though motorhomes are not the biggest culprit, we can all do our bit to cut carbon emissions, says Peter Rosenthal
in depth
The world’s climate is changing and even the most passionate petrolhead can’t argue with the clear and obvious signs of that, which are all around us. From the extreme weather events of the hottest summer on record to the increasing number of storms and floods, the effects are everywhere you care to look.
The ice record – where pockets of atmosphere that have been frozen for hundreds of years in bubbles trapped beneath the Arctic ice are analysed – provides the most damning evidence and clearly shows the impact humans have had on the planet since the advent of the Industrial Revolution.
All in all, these days it is undeniable (although some die-hards still do) that the world’s climate continues to be adversely affected by human activity.
We all need to change our behaviour in the hope that science can rescue us from the worst effects of this. As the saying goes, every little helps.
So if we want to keep the planet in as good a condition as we can for our children and grandchildren, we have to be mindful about how we holiday. Which prompts the question: how green is your motorhome?
UK EMISSIONS RELATIVE TO GLOBAL EMISSIONS
Before we dig deeper into the green credentials of various different types of holiday, we need to gain some appreciation of how much the UK contributes to global emissions, relative to other countries.
According to data from the global statistics website Worldometer, the UK is responsible for 1.03% of global emissions and ranks as the 17th largest polluter, just ahead of Italy and France.
The number one polluter is China, which is responsible for 29.1% of all CO2emissions. Considering its size, its role as the workshop of the world and its enthusiasm for coal-fed power stations, this is no surprise.
The US is the next worst polluter, but is producing approximately half of the carbon emissions of China, at 14%.
Elsewhere, India produces 7% of the world’s CO2emissions, Russia emits 4.65% and Japan, 3.5%; Germany serves up double the global emissions of the UK, at 2.17%.
So a starting point in our attempts to be greener is to think about where we buy our goods from. That includes consideration of the source country’s green credentials, and the implications of tr
