The pandemic brought forth by Covid-19 caused much change and hardship. However, not every change that the world underwent in regards to the pandemic was bad. Due to the decreased levels of travel that occurred from the pandemic, CO2 emissions fell by 5.4% in 2020. In the United States alone, the 4.58 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide produced in 2020 was an 11% decrease from the previous year. The decrease in the US was also due largely to the decrease in transportation seen both in the US and throughout the world. Since the transportation sector is the biggest contributor to CO2 emissions in the US since 2016, this 11% decrease is a welcome change. The drastically decreased amount of man-made pollution in the air appears as a positive from the outside. However, despite the sudden 5.4% drop in CO2 emissions, the growth in atmospheric concentrations remained within the year to year variation caused by natural processes according to NASA. This is due largely to the fact that absorb as much CO2 as it had in previous years.
The dip seen in reported levels of CO2 emissions was however temporary and the CO2 emission levels have bounced back up. The 5.4% decrease reported during the early stages of the pandemic was still short of the necessary 7.6% yearly reduction estimated by the United Nations Environment Programme. Even with the world at a standstill during the early months of the pandemic, the required decrease of CO2 emissions estimated to be necessary were still not met. These decreased levels of CO2 have now rebounded due to the reopening of many sectors and the world is back on the same trajectory it had been on prior to the pandemic.
Works cited
https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/emission-reductions-from-pandemic-had-unexpected-effects-on-atmosphere
https://www.statista.com/statistics/183943/us-carbon-dioxide-emissions-from-1999/
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-00090-3
good quality data, what solutions for these problems could we have drawn from this?
I found similar information to what you found. I found an article that stated for the first time that a decrease in the levels of carbon dioxide decreased due to human activity.
It’s interesting to think about 2020 being a large dip in CO2 emissions due to the lack of commuters. Your data about the 2021 CO2 emissions increase is interesting, and makes me think about how 2021 was one of the most profitable years for most major online shipping companies. Could online shipping and production be playing a major part in those emissions?
I really like how you included carbon dioxide emissions before and during the pandemic because that is not something I realized would have an impact. It was surprising to read that the CO2 levels have now rebounded and almost were not impacted by the pandemic at all.
I had never thought about how the pandemic affected carbon dioxide emissions, although it definitely makes sense due to the decrease in transportation! It is definitely disheartening that the world is back on the trajectory it was on before the pandemic, as you pointed out.
Pandemic has brought forth an opportunity to cut back significantly on climate change. I hope that it makes people conscious of how much we are able to do if the whole world come together to work on climate change. I am fully aware that the pandemic has cut back on the economy too, but I believe that we can find a balance in economy growth and climate wellness (just like we discussed in class)