Measurement, Modelling, Mapping and Management (4M)

An Evidence-Based Methodology for Understanding and Shrinking the Urban Carbon Footprint

A Giant Leap for Carbon Footprinting?

Researchers from the Universities of De Montfort, Sheffield and Leeds are on their way to making a giant leap for the practice of Carbon Footprinting. New environmental buzz word, Carbon Footprinting (CF), is never far from anyone’s lips but how is a CF actually calculated? And what can the measurements really tell us?

The university research team (grouped together as the 4M Consortium) are taking steps to answer these questions and create an evidence-based methodology for understanding and shrinking the urban carbon footprint.
Working in collaboration with Leicester City Council, the 4M project seeks to produce a carbon emissions inventory for the whole city of Leicester and in doing so, place the calculations of the CF of cities on a secure platform. By standardising the practice of Carbon Footprinting in this way, the 4M hope to address the Audit Commission’s concerns for ‘the robustness and transparency of the data produced in Carbon Footprinting.

The city-wide CF will be created by drawing data from a series of sources including the carbon emissions from domestic and non-domestic buildings; the reduction of emissions from transport through the adoption of green travel schemes and modern fuels; the contribution of green space to carbon sequestration rates and the impact that personal carbon quotas would have on the lifestyle and well-being of city dwellers.

Using these small steps 4M will make the giant leap to identifying the scale of action needed to substantially shrink the UK’s urban CF. And by creating techniques for measuring, modelling, mapping and managing the carbon sources in UK cities, ensure policy makers and stakeholders in the building sector understand the process of Carbon Footprinting.
For more information please contact: Prof. Margaret Bell at margaret.bell@ncl.ac.uk or click here.