AS the pressure to reduce our environmental footprint grows, one mosque has promised to do its bit by becoming the first in the country to be entirely carbon neutral.

In a bid to combat climate change, all of the carbon emissions produced by the South Woodford Muslim community centre through use of gas and electricity will be offset by the charity Tolerance International, which will plant trees in the rainforest to eliminate the centre's impact on global warming.

Dr Mohammed Fahim, chairman and head Imam at the mosque and community centre in Mulberry Way, said: "We are the first mosque in the country to be carbon free and we are trying to be pioneers. We are going to ensure that we promote environmentally friendly things so people will start to recycle more and not be wasteful. And people at the mosque will have to start to think about how to be carbon free in their lives as well."

Dr Fahim's new year's resolution is to be consistently kind to the environment, and encourage others to be green as he leads by example.

"One of the things Muslims do is use a lot of water," he said. "We must wash before we pray, and we must shower after certain things, but even if the water comes from a rushing stream it is important to not be wasteful."

Tolerance International has calculated the mosque's carbon emissions and will offset them through its tree planting programme in Peru which costs the mosque just £3 per month.

Charity representative Anne Cooper said: "One of the main problems with the energy intensive lifestyles of people in the developed world is the impact it is having on people in the developing world - we are changing the weather and making life very difficult for people in Africa and Asi by causing more droughts, more storms, rising sea temperatures, more famines and more land disputes over diminishing food supplies. So we should be doing our bit."

The average business emits ten to 12 tonnes of CO2 a year. To calculate your carbon emissions and work out how to eliminate them, log on to www.toleranceinternational.org.uk.