Quantifying Urban Carbon Footprints: Analyzing the Impact of Residential Lifestyles in Shah Alam, Selangor

In recent decades, there have been significant changes in the residents' lifestyle and the composition of their consumption. Consumption in urban households is increasingly important, contributing to an increase in carbon emissions. This study employed questionnaires to analyze CO2 emissions based on the daily activities of urban households and to estimate the total CO2 emissions per household in Shah Alam. A web-based carbon footprint calculator was used to determine the amount of carbon emissions produced as a result of direct and indirect residential consumption, which included the household size, income, daily commuting and transportation means, food, clothing, electricity, and household facilities. All data were then analysed and the factors that affected those emissions were investigated. The total amount of carbon emissions to the environment was estimated as 1,198.88 tonnes of CO2 per year. Key factors influencing this carbon footprint included the demographic information of the household, the daily food consumed, the primary spending items, energy consumption, the daily commuting, and the residents' environmental knowledge.