Each American, on average, uses over
10,000 kilowatt hours of electricity each year, and some estimate a whopping
20 percent of that goes into air conditioning. Each year, the United States burns through 100 million tons of carbon emissions
just to power our A/Cs, which likely contributes, among other things, to
summer smog. That's why the EPA's
carbon calculator allows people to determine, using degrees Fahrenheit, exactly how much carbon their air conditioning emits.
Other small household habits can use up a lot of energy, too. Shortening showers, washing clothes in cold water, and air drying clothes can all reduce a person's carbon footprint, though they aren't necessarily easy habits to take up. Electronics aren't innocent, either. Energy Star estimates that swapping out existing computers for their approved products would
save 15 billion pounds of greenhouse gas emissions annually—totalling about $1 billion in energy costs. Swapping out standard light bulbs, windows, and existing appliances for those with the
Energy Star label would help, too.
