Inspired by John Whitehead, I decided to use the EPA emissions calculator to find out how much CO2 my household emits.

Total emissions for my family of two adults and two children came out at 30,502 lbs of CO2. I used actual kwh and so on rather than price to base the calculations on, so that is a pretty accurate figure. It’s actually probably too high as it includes a figure for unrecycled newspapers, and we don’t get any.

Average for a family of 2 is 41,500 lbs. Given that I am contributing 4.5 metric tonnes less social damage to the environment than the average family of 2, never mind 4, using Sir Nicholas Stern’s figure of $85 per ton, I reckon I should be getting a check for $385 from a carbon offset company any day now to reflect my virtue.

If Al Gore would like to engage in a Coasean bargain with me, I’m open to the offer.