Individuals can help mitigate climate change by using less air conditioning.

According to Senior Minister of State for the Environment and Water Resources Amy Khor, the buildings and household sectors contributed 19 per cent towards Singapore's total greenhouse gas emissions in 2017.

And air conditioning makes up a "sizeable portion" of these sectors' total emissions.

Industrial sector still highest contributor

The contribution of air-conditioning in buildings to emission was more than the land transport sector at 14 per cent.

It was also more than the incineration of municipal solid waste at waste-to-energy plants, which stands at three per cent.

However, the industrial sector is the highest contributor at 60 per cent.

Singapore emitted a total of 52.5 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent of greenhouse gas in 2017.

Khor said that Singapore remains committed to cutting its emissions under the Paris Agreement Pledge, and outlined the measures which it has implemented:

• Carbon tax, which came into effect this year.
• Encouraging public transport over private transport, capping vehicle population at zero growth aside from commercial vehicles.
• Zero Waste Masterplan to reduce incineration.
• Building and Construction Authority (BCA) Green Mark Scheme to encourage building owners and developers to increase energy efficiency.

Use energy efficient air conditioners

With regards to air con in particular, Khor mentioned that the National Environment Agency (NEA) introduced the Mandatory Energy Labelling Scheme to encourage Singaporeans to buy energy-efficient air conditioners.

The Minimum Energy Performance Standards (MEPS) is also in place to phase out the less efficient appliances from the market.

Khor added:

"We can all choose to make climate-friendly choices and adopt a more sustainable lifestyle, such as setting the air-conditioner temperature at 25 deg C, practising the 3Rs, and taking public transport."

Top image from Pixabay.