Carbon Footprints of Household Usage

There is a growing concern of the impact of energy consumption on the environment in

Malaysia as a result of the increased level of domestic energy consumption. Consequently,
CO
2
emissions in the country are increasing at an alarming rate. In 2005, carbon emissions
in Malaysia were 5.45 metric tonnes per capita the third highest in the ASEAN region
(referring to Table 1).
Households are a part of the consumers of the total energy directly and indirectly in
Malaysia. Household activities contribute directly or indirectly to the generation of CO2
emissions through the use of electricity from electrical appliances (referring to Table 2) as
well as gas and oil for cooking at home which have resulted in harmful materials and
pollutants being emitted into the air. Another household activity contributing directly to the
generation of CO2 is the burning of fossil fuels by private motor vehicles. In recent years, the
number of private motor vehicles on Malaysian roads has steadily increased thereby
increasing the consumption of fossil fuels.








Fig. 1
Energy Policy, 2007


Table 1: CO
2
emissions of the world and the selected regions and countries, 2005
Source: IEA, 2007









Table 2: Appliances ownership level in Malaysia

Source: Energy Policy, 2007




Carbon Footprint of Cement Industry

Fig.2: Carbon Emissions by Source (1998)
Source: pemsea.org
Among entire energy intensive sector, cement industry is a major emitter of carbon dioxide
(CO
2
). A single industry accounts for around 5% of global CO
2
emissions.
Cement manufacturing is highly energy and emissions intensive because of the extreme
heat required to produce it. Producing a ton of cement requires 4.7 million BTU of energy,
equivalent to about 400 pounds of coal, and generates nearly a ton of CO
2
.
The production of cement releases greenhouse gas emissions both directly and indirectly:
the heating of limestone releases CO
2
directly, while the burning of fossil fuels to heat the
kiln indirectly results in CO
2
emissions.
The direct emissions of cement occur through a chemical process called calcination.
Calcination occurs when limestone, which is made of calcium carbonate, is heated, breaking
down into calcium oxide and CO
2
. This process accounts for ~50% of all emissions from
cement production.
Indirect emissions are produced by burning fossil fuels to heat the kiln. Kilns are usually
heated by coal, natural gas, or oil, and the combustion of these fuels produces additional
CO
2
emissions, just as they would in producing electricity. This represents around 40% of
cement emissions. Finally, the electricity used to power additional plant machinery, and the
final transportation of cement, represents another source of indirect emissions and account
for 5-10% of the industrys emissions.