Number Crunch
Greenhouse Gas Emissions Fell by More Than 10% Last Year
But will it last?
10.3%: That’s how much global greenhouse gas emissions fell in 2020 as a result of global shutdowns to combat the spread of Covid-19, according to an analysis by independent research company Rhodium Group, per Future Human.
That’s the single biggest drop in greenhouse gas emissions in the post-World War II period, bringing emissions below 1990 levels for the first time. That sounds like good news, but it’s bound to be fleeting as vaccines roll out and economic activity revs up again.
It’s unfortunate that it’s taken a global pandemic to pump the brakes on our march toward climate disaster. There is some hope for more sustainable interventions, like the steep decline in the cost of solar power, startups tackling thorny issues in areas like air conditioning, and businesses making commitments to renewable energy, but if we want to slow down climate change while helping humanity, big business needs to change how it operates and step up the pressure on policymakers.
Don’t make me choose between an overheating planet and another pandemic.
