huella de carbono
nounCEFR B1
What does “huella de carbono” mean in English?
carbon footprint
carbon footprint (total greenhouse gas emissions generated by our actions — calcular la huella de carbono, reducir la huella de carbono)
Example sentences
Calculé mi huella de carbono con una herramienta en línea y descubrí que los vuelos representaban la mitad del total.
I calculated my carbon footprint with an online tool and discovered that flights represented half of the total.
La huella de carbono de un producto incluye todas las emisiones desde la producción de las materias primas hasta su descarte.
The carbon footprint of a product includes all emissions from the production of raw materials to its disposal.
Si quieres reducir tu huella de carbono, lo más efectivo no es reciclar sino volar menos y comer menos carne.
If you want to reduce your carbon footprint, the most effective thing is not to recycle but to fly less and eat less meat.
How to use it
La huella de carbono means 'carbon footprint' — the total amount of greenhouse gases generated by our actions, expressed in equivalent tonnes of CO₂. It is feminine (la huella). The compound is a calque of the English term. Key collocates: calcular la huella de carbono, reducir la huella de carbono, tener una huella elevada/baja.
Common mistake
La huella de carbono is always feminine because huella (footprint, trace) is feminine. Students sometimes say *el huella. The compound requires all three words: do not shorten to *la huella in a first mention without context. The key collocate is reducir la huella de carbono; compensar la huella (to offset the footprint) is also used in activist/corporate discourse.