If you fly frequently, the miles add up quickly. Buying a new gas-electric hybrid car may reduce your carbon dioxide emissions by 6,431 pounds a year, but making just one round-trip flight from New York to San Francisco will wipe those savings away. Flying is different from driving, though. We don't expect you to go out and buy yourself a fuel-efficient plane anytime soon.
What You Should Know
- The International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) recently suggested that, at high altitudes, aerosols in jet engine exhaust deplete ozone in the stratosphere, and thus warm the Earth at two to four times the rate of ground-level CO2.
- Each year 679 million Americans fly a total of 79 billion miles--that's 120 million tons of carbon dioxide emitted each year.
- In 2007, a record-breaking 25.8 million passengers rode Amtrak, our nation's interstate railway company, and the numbers keep growing.
- If 100,000 people took the high-speed Acela train from New York to Boston instead of flying, they would collectively prevent 7 million pounds of CO2 from being emitted.
Easy Things You Can Do
Catch a Greyhound instead. Try to plan your travels ahead so that you can give yourself time to take a bus - the cheapest and least polluting way to travel long distances. Almost all today's intercity buses have reclining seats and show movies while you ride. Check out Greyhound, the nation's largest interstate bus line, to see if you can make your next trip by bus.
Take the train instead. Faster than the bus and at least twice as energy-efficient as plane travel, intercity trains are becoming more and more popular. With spacious sleeper cars and sit-down dining cars, traveling by train is romantic and affordable, even if it does take a bit longer. Check out Amtrak's routes when planning your next trip.
Ride the fast train. Bullet or high-speed trains have been zipping across Europe and Japan at speeds of 200 miles per hour for the last decade. Currently, the only operational high-speed rail line in the U.S. is the Acela, which runs between Boston, New York, and Washington. But be informed: The California High Speed Rail Authority is currently studying a San Francisco Bay Area and Sacramento to Los Angeles and San Diego line! See a cool video about their plan. Or read a recent LA Times (April 2007) article about how this exciting plan is facing new obstacles from our "green" Governor.
Consider driving. If time permits and you have more than three people in the car with you, go for the long haul and drive. You'll emit less carbon dioxide than you would by flying, no matter how long or short your flight is. And you'll have more flexibility once you get to your destination. If four people ride in the car, it's typically less polluting than taking a train, but if three people are in the car, it's better to take the train. Also, do some math and see if renting a car that gets excellent fuel efficiency (such as a gas-electric hybrid) would be cheaper than taking your own car.
If you must fly...buy carbon offsets to compensate for the global warming emissions your flight will cause. This is a growing trend and many airlines--particularly European ones such as British Airways and SAS, who got into the game early--are eager to help customers ease their consciences about flying by offering offset services. If you're planning a flight, check with your airline for carbon offset affiliations they may offer. Read more about legitimate, verifiable offset programs for plan travel here.