Among the Most Impactful Actions:
FLYING LESS
The emissions from the travel in the year 2000 alone will lead to an average increase of the surface temperature of 1.5 mK 50 years later (2050) [5]. "Transport accounts for 26% of global CO2 emissions and is one of the few industrial sectors where emissions are still growing" [1].
With aviation being a principle contributor to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the transport sector, this page focuses on clarifying its impact and providing approaches to reduce emissions from this problem area [1].
With aviation being a principle contributor to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the transport sector, this page focuses on clarifying its impact and providing approaches to reduce emissions from this problem area [1].
Impacts of Aviation Travel
Individual Solutions
The best way to reduce the impact of air travel is very simple: fly less. While this is a self-explanatory solution, it is often difficult to find alternatives to traveling by plane, especially overseas. The following include some possible solutions to this dilemma:
Using other means of travel:
Restrict flying to only critical, long-distance trips.
Restrict flying to only critical, long-distance trips.
- Trains can replace planes for short- to medium-distance trips [3].
Telecommute:
"In a world of global business footprints and international collaboration, if people can work together without being in the same place, they can dodge a host of travel-related carbon emissions" [4].
"In a world of global business footprints and international collaboration, if people can work together without being in the same place, they can dodge a host of travel-related carbon emissions" [4].
- By avoiding emissions from business air travel, telepresence can reduce emissions by 2 billion metric tons (2 gigatons) of carbon dioxide (CO2) over 30 years [4].
- "For organizations, the investment in telepresence systems pays off with $1.3 trillion worth of savings and 82 billion fewer unproductive travel hours" [4].
- If businesses in the U.S. activate 10,000 telepresence units:.
- Reducing travel leads to less grueling schedules for employees [4].
"By integrating a set of high-performance visual, audio, and network technologies and services, people who are geographically separated can interact in a way that captures many of the best aspects of an in-person experience" [4]. |
To find out more ways to reduce emissions from transportation, and in other sectors, click on the buttons below!
References
- Chapman, L. (2007). Transport and climate change: a review. Journal of Transport Geography, 15(5). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2006.11.008
- Wynes, S., & Nicholas, K. (2017). The climate mitigation gap: education and government recommendations miss the most effective individual actions. Environmental Research Letters, 12(7). https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/aa7541
- Biello, M. (2007). 10 Solutions for Climate Change. Scientific American. Retrieved from https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/10-solutions-for-climate-change/#
- Hawken, P. (Ed.). (2017). Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming. New York: Penguin Books. [p. 155].
- Borken-Kleefeld, J., Berntsen, T., & Fuglestvedt, J. (2010). Specific Climate Impact of Passenger and Freight Transport. Environmental Science and Technology, 44(15). https://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/es9039693#top