We've just done our first environmental audit, using the "Saving the Planet Without Costing The Earth" book by Donnachadh McCarthy, a well known environmental author, campaigner and sometime Grauniad contributor.

(See here for Amazon pricing)

Here are the results...

This should be our first audit - we've been here 7 months, now, and thought it was time to get a baseline ready for the years ahead.

We don't intend to be eco-warriers and knit lentils, what we aim to do it simply live a greener life, and each year steadily make progress to reduce our impact on the planet, and take some responsibility for what impact we do make.

The audit, using the standard questions, is out of a total possible 1524 - it is possible to get higher than that if you make green initiatives that aren't covered in the book. Each point is scored out of 3, with 0 being totally devoid of action, and 3 being something you always do.

The questions are grouped into sections, and these are our "To Feb 2007" results:

 Making a total of 723 out of 1524, about 47.4% perfect green.

Some areas are more difficult to judge than others, for example the "Saving the Planet at Work" is difficult for me to assess. I don't necessarily know the policies in place, and cannot properly judge it. Also, the work I'm involved with does impact the planet as it enables large business and medium sized businesses to save quite substantial amounts of energy. Should that make it more green? To avoid these sorts of nightmare calculations, I choose to ignore the work, otherwise the areas such as carbon footprint also need to be realigned, and I'd probably be in negative territory...

If I discount that, it's 598 out of 1251, making 47.8% green. A very minor difference, I know, but it's an area I can't easilu check on and make sure is correct.

"Waste Not Want Not" covers mainly recycling topics.

"Water of Life" covers the use of water.

"Positively Fuelling our lives" covers the use of energy in the home.

"Our Direct Link With Nature" covers areas such as the garden and farm environment. Ironically, our first year in Sweden has seen a huge backwards step. In a previous year we would have scored a lot higher. This year, as we were moving here in the summer and harvest times, we've not grown our own fruit and veg for the first time in years! This should change dramatically this year!

"Real Food or Chemical Food" is all about the food you eat, and again is affected badly with our intial moving. Expect big changes here, too!

"Personal Maintenance" is all about the maintenance of the home, and also you personally!

"Out and About" is about how green you are away from the safe environs of the home. 

I'd recommend buying a copy of the book! If nothing else it brings home to you how you can make changes at little or no cost, and gives you a good bellweather of if you are actually as green as you think.