Sims 4 - Eco Living: How to I change the footprint?

From Carl's Guide:

Going Green
So, if you want to make your Sims Neighborhood have a Green Eco-Footprint you need to build with green materials, and place objects like the new solar panels, wind turbines, and dew collectors. Other means of power and water generation are more toward the industrial side. Like using regular fuel instead of bio-fuel. If you struggle to move the needle, go into build mode and make modifications to the neighbors' homes to improve the neighborhood's average in order to make it green. You could just add a bunch of windows with green values, and change all wall coverings to be green. The fact that this costs you nothing is frustrating to me, because it means my Sim's actions matter less.

https://www.carls-sims-4-guide.com/expansionpacks/ecolifestyle/eco-footprint.php

@Brd709 fireplaces contribute to the industrual footprint; you can check the descriptions in build/buy to see. If you want you can go in to game options & turn off environmental effects like smog. It's under Pack Options; you'll have to scroll down a bit to get to them though.

The fireplaces are not so big "issue" if there is just one, and if there are much other green materials (green wall materials and floor materials) and those other green effect -things used.
If there are many fireplaces on the same lot, then the effect (to the industrial footprint) would be more powerful from them.
I do have fireplaces in my sims homes (just one) and I use a lot of green materials + often solar panels, wind turbines and dew collectors. Some lots have all of those, some only one (type) or two (types) of those.
I like to have the green eco-footprint in my neighborhoods (prefarably in all of them), so I have made at least small changes to almost all of the lots, including community lots, by replacing the floor materials and wall materials to the ones with green effect, or to the ones that are neutral (no green effect nor industrial effect).
I also always replace that "basic concrete tile" which is used as a default for the 'roof' in houses (under the actual roof, the tile material that covers the rooms and decks etc.), since that basic material has an industrial effect, so I replace that with green material, for example with that "gravel surface" tile. :blush:

I have made these changes to many (almost all) builds (in my current saves) since I have had the Eco Lifestyle -pack (I bought it when it was released), and I have saved many builds to my Library so if I would make brand new saves, I can then replace the lots with those versions that have the green materials.
And whenever I'm building new lots or renovating existing ones, I always pay attention to the green effect materials and use those as much as I can, or then use the neutral effect -materials :blush:

Do fire places have an effect when in use? Should I get rid of them and replace them with thermostats?