Drive a full-size pickup, take a couple of trips on board a jet to the Lower 48, and unless you live in an unheated tent, you're likely putting 37,000 pounds of carbon dioxide gas into the atmosphere each year.
That's the sobering conclusion that can be calculated on a new Web page launched Thursday by Alaska Conservation Solutions, an organization founded last year to warn of global warming consequences and suggest solutions.
The page contains a carbon calculator that allows Alaskans by region to see how they compare to the average output of 24,000 pounds of CO2.
"The goal of this Web site is to educate Alaskans about the effects each of us has on our environment," said Heather Benz, a National Merit Scholar who will begin her freshman year at Stanford University next week. Benz created the page for the organization.
The page also offers ways for Alaskans to reduce emissions and save money, she said.
Burning carbon-based fuels adds to naturally occurring greenhouse gases that retain Earth's heat. Accelerated warming is most apparent at the Earth's poles.
Deborah Williams, president of Alaska Conservation Solutions, said the warming is evident in the thinning of Alaska's glaciers and changes in the boreal forest.
"I think it is symbolic that we are launching this today, given the news that is in the paper and on television, that the Arctic ice cap has diminished considerably in the winter," Williams said, citing reports of two NASA studies released Wednesday.
When her organization was launched a year ago, people were skeptical, she said. Solutions will be accomplished by utilities, industry, government and individuals, she said, and the new Web site provides one-stop shopping for answers.
"People now are demanding to know what they can do," Williams said.
The carbon calculator aims to reveal the output of individuals.
Pick Anchorage, and the carbon calculator automatically determines that the local utility gets 11 percent of its power from renewable resources, in this case, hydroelectric. Village utilities generally provide all their power by burning fossil fuel. In Kotzebue, 30 percent is provided by a wind farm.
A monthly layout of $150 for electricity divided among a family of four means each is responsible for 8,775 pounds of CO2, according to the calculator.
A CO2 meter on the pages grows with calculations for home heating. Then there's transportation.
Driving a full-size pickup 12,000 miles per year adds 14,400 pounds.
Travel Outside to see grandma? A couple of round-trip airline tickets of 6,000 miles apiece adds 16,320 pounds. Flying, Benz said, puts out tons of emissions.
"It's really hard in Alaska because you can't not fly," she said.
There are calculations for the hours spent on a four-wheeler and riverboat. Think a canoe doesn't contribute? The site calculates emissions that went into its manufacture.
If the calculations are depressing, there's another button at the bottom of the page: How to reduce emissions. The Alaska Carbon Reducer gives detailed suggestions on how to cut down on the output of carbon.
"We really want to motivate people to reduce their emissions, not just think about reducing their emissions," Benz said.
Users can find out how to replace a pickup with a hybrid car, how to pick one and how to keep its tires properly inflated for maximum mileage.
Buying locally grown food supports the economy and reduces emissions from the planes, barges and trucks used to move food to Alaska, Benz said.
There are links on reducing energy consumption in homes and the benefits of replacing conventional light bulbs with incandescent lights -- and where to order them for people who live in villages off the road system.
Alaska is often called "ground zero" for the impacts of global warming, Williams said.
"We want to be ground zero for the solution," she said.
