Climate change is something I have always been aware of. Throughout my primary education I was part of the Eco committee and got the chance to learn about how I could help the environment. As I have gotten older I still keep the idea of helping in my mind however I do know that there is a lot more I could be doing to help the planet.

I have gotten used to hearing on going debates between government officials about climate change, what it is and if it is really happening. It is a topic that is quite often on the news. In recent years the majority of people have been issued with information leaflets, bulletins and resources that help us help the planet. Personally I find it really hard to recycle, I almost always forget. Which is why the use of various coloured bins for different materials is extremely useful. Within my local council we have a green bin for general waste, a brown bin for garden waste, a blue bin for newspapers and plastics, a purple bin for glass and a small grey bin for food waste. Within my household these bins really made me aware of how much I actually throw out and what I could re-use. I now also rarely buy a plastic bag at a supermarket or shop and I believe this is due to the governments policy on charging for bags. When plastic bags were free of charge my mum had a drawer dedicated to them now I am lucky if I can find one in the house.

Before learning more about climate change I never realised how much the Scottish government was doing to help. While reading the Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009 I discovered that there is set targets for the years 2020 and 2050. I was also shocked to find out that scientists think that our global temperature could rice by 6 degrees Celsius within this century. That a rise of 2 degrees Celsius could mean more acidic seas leading to a destruction of food chains (WWF, 2017).

After completing a task to measure my carbon footprint I realised that I could be doing a lot more to lower it.

I will now make a conscious effort to turn all my appliances off from the main switch rather than leaving them on standby and I will make more of an effort not to waste food.

References:

Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009. asp 12. Edinburgh: The Stationary Office.

WWF. (2017) HOW BIG IS YOUR ENVIRONMENTAL FOOTPRINT? [Online] Available: http://footprint.wwf.org.uk/ [Accessed: 28 September 2017]

WWF. (2017) Climate Change. [Online] Available: https://www.wwf.org.uk/what-we-do/area-of-work/climate-change-and-energy [Accessed: 28th September 2017]