Carbon emissions from Australian airlines cut in half by coronavirus

The massive reduction in air travel caused by the coronavirus has resulted in a cut in global carbon emissions from the industry of 10.3 million tonnes over February and March, and by the end of the year the reduction could be as much as 352.7 million tonnes.

If the reductions in domestic flights introduced by Qantas and Virgin remain in place for three months the amount of carbon emissions released by the industry would be 4.5 million tonnes less than over the same period last year. If the restrictions last six months the reduction would be nine million tonnes and 13.2 million tonnes should they last nine months according to an analysis by the Australia Institute, a think tank with a focus on climate and environment issues. That would translate to a 56 per cent reduction over the year.

Reductions in business travel might even be locked in after travel restrictions ease, as individuals will have become accustomed to new videoconferencing software such as Zoom and businesses will seek to cut costs and increase productivity when the pandemic eases, according to the paper’s author, Richard Merzian.

He notes that previous infectious disease outbreaks such as SARS in 2003 caused only temporary declines in travel in affected regions, but this outbreak is global and likely to last long enough to cause behavioural changes.

Read the story from The Age by Nick O’Malley - “Carbon emissions from Australian airlines cut in half by coronavirus.”