Top 5 Little Known Eco Footprint Facts

Ok, so this is more of a theory than a fact, but it’s really compelling, so we’re including it. Let’s say you get a more energy efficient car.You naturally think “Great! Now I can drive more!” And so you end up driving more, thereby reducing or even negating the energy savings. Or maybe you say “great! I’ve saved so much money on gas, now I can take a trip to Europe.” And, so, the short term savings that the increased efficient afforded you have actually allowed you to consume more overall. These are examples of what’s called “The Rebound Effect,” or “Jevon’s Paradox.” Counteracting the rebound effect is very difficult since exponential growth is essential to a capitalist economy. As a reaction, an ideological movement called Degrowth has developed, based on the idea of deliberately shrinking the economy.

Betcha never gave much thought to what it takes to create your clothes. According to Levi’s, a single pair of jeans will use 3000 litres, or 790 gallons of water in its lifecycle. Roughly half of that is Levi’s growing and processing the cotton, and half is you cleaning them over and over again. Conventional cotton, by the way, is one of the most pesticide-intensive crops on the planet. It’s estimated that over 100,000 tons of textile dye find their way past water treatment facilities and into waterways and oceans every year. Synthetic materials like nylon and polyester can release greenhouse gasses and heavy metals into the atmosphere. Choosing organically grown natural fibers are probably your best bet.

You can charge up your Tesla and feel good that you aren’t spewing nasty exhaust everywhere while you carpool to work, but where is your electricity coming from? Coal is still the US’s major source of electricity, while only 13% of the country’s electricity came from renewable resources. The story in the UK is roughly the same. But if you manage to find a renewable energy provider, or create your own, then you’re good to go!

The Centre for Disease Control in the US says we have about 219 toxic chemicals in our bodies, just hanging out. Then we die, and they go back into the environment in one form or another. If you are cremated, they’ll go into the air. In fact, it’s been estimated that 16% of the mercury emissions in the UK come from cremated dental fillings. If you are buried, you’ll be slathered in makeup and pumped full of formaldehyde, which is also pretty toxic. But artist Jae Rhim Lee is experimenting with a burial suit that is inoculated with spores of mushrooms which would be able to eat your body and break down the toxins therein.

Ecovillages are communities created with the goal of social, environmental, economic, and cultural sustainability. Dancing Rabbit is one such community in Missouri, USA. They aim to live on 10% of the resources that the average American lives on. Far from living a life of poverty, they seem to be perfectly happy. They build homes from locally sourced natural materials, plant gardens instead of lawns, use solar energy, share vehicles, and use composting toilets.Moving out of the city and into a whole new social structure may not be for everybody, but there are probably lessons that everybody can take from ecovillages like this.


So, what do you think? What are you doing to reduce your environmental impact? For more eco-friendly Top 10s and wildly unsustainable Top 5s, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.