How does conserving electricity reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere?

Answer 1

It happens because very much energy is generated by using fossil fuels - coal, oil and gas.

At the power plant steam turbines drive the generators, and the steam is made from pure water in boilers that burn the fuel. The burning process is what creates carbon dioxide and the heat comes from the formation of the chemical bonds between carbon and oxygen when carbon dioxide is formed from the carbon in the fuel and the oxygen from the air.

So conserving electrical energy means that less CO2 is produced.

When you switch an appliance off in your home, the local power plant starts to speed up ever so slightly, and the automatic throttle causes the boiler to produce slightly less steam to keep the speed constant. Therefore whenever you switch something off the power plant gives off CO2 at a slightly slower rate, almost immediately.

Answer 2

The vast majority of electricity is generated by burning fossil fuels which adds CO2 to the atmosphere.
By reducing the amount of electricity we use less needs to be generated, therefore less fuel is burned.

Answer 3

Conserving electricity reduces the demand for fossil fuel power plants, which are a major source of carbon dioxide emissions. When we use less electricity, these power plants burn less coal, oil, or gas, resulting in lower carbon dioxide emissions being released into the atmosphere.