Q. “How can individuals help our governments to limit global warming? If we want to reach the goal, how much greenhouse gases should I reduce my intake and how? ”
Chantal G.
R. Obviously, you are not listening to those who say that our greenhouse gas emissions in Quebec are insignificant and that, therefore, our efforts are useless compared to those of giants like the United States and China.
You are right.
We are all responsible for the fight against climate change.
And on average, each Quebecer releases 9.5 tonnes of CO into the atmosphere.2 per year. It is still too much.
Obviously, our governments have the most important role. But that is no reason, as citizens, to wash their hands of it.
“When we start to make an assessment of what we emit as greenhouse gases on an individual level, it may not seem like much if we relate it to the whole problem, but we all have a responsibility. We’re all part of solving the problem. We can have an impact, ”explains Géraud de Lassus St-Geniès, who teaches at the Faculty of Law at Laval University.
Individually, knowing that the transportation sector is responsible for the lion’s share of greenhouse gas emissions in Quebec, it would be useful to start there.
“We have to change our habits, use the car less and use active transportation and public transportation more”, explains Annie Levasseur, professor at the École de technologie supérieure and holder of the Canada Research Chair on the measurement of impact of human activities on climate change.
It would be wise, then, to think of the food sector. Reduce the consumption of red meat, for example.
But we would also have every advantage to rethink our consumption in a more general way.
“Review the necessity of what we consume. Try to go for products that have a longer lifespan, that can be repaired. What’s interesting, too, is sharing things. I always give the example of the tool that you buy for work and which then stays in your garage. You can borrow it from someone! », Emphasizes Annie Levasseur.
It is quite possible to make your own carbon budget. “In the same way that you make a budget for your personal finances, by saying to yourself, in light of what I’m saying: where can I make cuts or make efforts? », Underlines Géraud de Lassus St-Geniès, who specifies that there are several sites which allow this kind of calculation.
Finally, let us not forget that each citizen has a real lever which allows him to push the government to act: his right to vote. This allows it to favor parties that propose plans to fight climate change that are up to the urgency of the situation.