If there is only one thing you do to improve your green footprint then it should be reducing the amount of times, and the distances, you fly. A medium/long haul flight can produce as much in the way of CO₂ emissions as the rest of your annual output combined. Planes produce 8 times more CO₂ per passenger mile than a train. On top of that the damage done to the atmosphere through vapour trails is still not fully understood, but best guess is that it AT LEAST TREBLES the environmental impact of the CO₂ output alone. It is thought that emissions into the upper atmosphere are far more destructive to the ozone layer than ground level emissions.

Increased air travel simply does not tie up with a national desire to slow down climate change and improve the environment.

But, you say, buying a £1 Ryanair ticket has to be so much cheaper than an expensive train ticket, and that’s the bottom line. Well before you come to that conclusion, add up all the costs involved in your journey, and the time involved from leaving your front door to arriving at your hotel at the other end.

If you are flying on holiday, then there are other considerations in relation to eco-friendly tourism as well.