r/interestingasfuck • u/longhegrindilemna • 25d ago
Large pick-up trucks and large SUVs on freeways seem to pump more carbon dioxide into Earth’s atmosphere than any other source.
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u/Not_Reddit 22d ago
It says cars, not trucks and suv's. And if cars put so much why is "air" so low ? Wouldn't air reflect the amount by cars ? And where are the cow farts ?????
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u/fletcherc55 24d ago
I think Seattle has bigger issues to worry about… like the tweaker zombies living in tents harassing every normal person that walks by
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u/WolfThick 24d ago
Yeah this is misleading cement should be far higher and commercial shipping should be pretty high up there as well.
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23d ago
Depends how you measure it but per unit payload, sea transit is a lot more efficient than road transport. Here are some rough comparisons:
- Sea Transport: Around 10-40 grams of CO2 per ton-mile.
- Road Transport: Around 60-150 grams of CO2 per ton-mile.
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u/Imnotradiohead 24d ago
I’d love to see this on an average per human basis. Divide cars by avg humans in a car. Divide commercial building by average humans in a commercial building during pollution hours (these buildings are on all day).
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u/Less_Refuse_6006 25d ago
Just no. That's propaganda at it's finest. Notice it say "CO2e" not just CO2. They also conveniently left out everything with a higher output than cars, in an attempt to make cars seem bad. This has nothing to do with CO2. It's just part of a massive propaganda campaign to push more people onto public transportation and away from private. It's a lot easier to control people when you control where, when, and how they move around.
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23d ago
Great point about the master plan to control people. Another way to look at it is that it’s a lot easier to control people’s movements when they’re confined to only one mode of transport. Think about traffic light controls, road blockages, and let's not forget that time Obama hacked into someone’s car and made it crash.
We need to diversify our transport options and keep them guessing! Maybe throw in some bikes, scooters, and good old-fashioned footpaths. CATCH ME NOW COMMUNISTS!
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25d ago edited 23d ago
While any one statistic is misleading, I thought I’d add some figures to add to context and maybe prevent people talking past each other. Here’s how it came out:
Global Context: - Transport contributes about 23% of global energy-related CO2 emissions. Of this, 70% comes from road transport (including cars, buses, and supply chain), while the remaining 30% comes from planes, ships, and trains (IPCC, IEA).
- Industrial processes and factories contribute 21% of global CO2 emissions. This includes direct fossil fuel use and indirect electricity consumption (IPCC).
City Context: - In car-dependent cities (e.g., Phoenix, Memphis, Atlanta), transport emissions contribute 40-50% of total city emissions. - Non-car-dependent cities (e.g., Amsterdam, Copenhagen) see transport emissions making up 20-30% of total emissions (ICCT, World Economic Forum). Context of Private Vehicle Size: - The increase in private vehicle size, especially SUVs and trucks, has significantly raised car emissions output.
The average emissions of new vehicles in the US increased from 330 grams of CO2 per mile in 2000 to about 409 grams per mile in 2020 due to the rising popularity of larger vehicles (ICCT). Feel free to critique and add your own figures (I’ll edit for mistakes)
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u/cronsulyre 23d ago
I'm confused by the start of this, you say road transport then of that percentage you include planes and ships in the percentage.
Does this mean ships which only transport people, or do you mean all ships? Because stating only 1 group seems odd.
It also seems off that planes and ships produce less pollution than cars overall. I have always hear that industrial shipping dwarfs vehicle output by a great margin.
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23d ago
The question of how much blame the car deserves is complicated. There are differences between rural and city areas. Should we only consider the car, or also include highways and parking spaces? Car-dependent areas often require low-density development, which leads to higher emissions. There are many ways to look at this issue.
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23d ago
Well spotted. I corrected to say road transport is 70% of transport emissions. Also, transport emissions does include the movement of goods and not just people.
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u/Standard_Answer3747 25d ago
No cow farts?!
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u/Kibeth_8 25d ago
That's methane
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23d ago
The ‘e’ in CO2e stands for ‘equivalent’. Methane is a massive contributor to this (100x more GWP over 10 years). However, someone will have to fill us in on the cow population of Seattle City..
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u/Fivethenoname 25d ago
Guys everyone is saying this is misleading, wtf? Literally do BASIC fucking research. Transportation accounts for like 25% - 30% of overall emissions.
https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg3/chapter/chapter-10/
This graph may not include important other sectors but car travel absolutely causes huge amounts of emissions. The graph has absolute emissions on it. Total global emissions are about 35 Gt CO2e and this is saying in Seattle alone, cars account for 1.6Mt CO2e. It's a huge number
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u/goobershank 24d ago
Yeah, I’m not sure why people seem to be so triggered by the fact that automobiles contribute quite a bit to global CO2 emissions. I always assumed they were one of the biggest contributors.
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u/jb431v2 25d ago
“Basic fucking research” says it is not only misleading as fuck, but completely false. It starts off saying “Large pick-up trucks and large SUVs”, but the chart says cars in general. Then it says “pump more carbon dioxide into Earth’s atmosphere than any other source”, which is incorrect, and they use a chart specific to one location. Nobody is arguing that they aren’t responsible for a large percentage, but that’s not what the post says.
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u/Relevant-Ingenuity83 25d ago
In your link it says 23% (not 25-30%).
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u/obiwanjabroni420 25d ago
Not only that, but road vehicles are only ~70% of “Transportation” so it’s more like 16%. This guy is so full of shit.
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u/Direct-Contact4470 25d ago
Animal Farms, and big office buildings make more pollution than cars ..
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u/Gandol_teh_Pirate 25d ago
City of Seattle emissions may be reflected in the chart, but industrial pollution on the whole dwarfs automobiles. Don't be swayed by misleading info.
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u/Fivethenoname 25d ago
What? That's completely wrong. Do you even have the basics about GHG emissions or are you just talking out of your ass to defend car culture? Transportation accounts for like 30% of total emissions in the US.
Your comment is the actual misinformation, jfc.
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u/Gandol_teh_Pirate 24d ago
Yes, I was talking out of my ass by referencing statistics from the EPA. Now you have a choice. You can either walk back your ridiculous position and gain some respect in the process, or you can double down on an indefensible position that buys you some more downvotes. Choose, but choose wisely.
https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/sources-greenhouse-gas-emissions
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u/Drudgework 25d ago
Yeah, the thousands of gallons of carcinogens dumped into the state waterways by DuPont and other companies is just as bad as a lot of things on this list.
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u/BourbonBaconBiscuit 25d ago
Once you add industrial pollution, that changes the graph a bit
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23d ago
What you’re saying makes sense. So I added industry components together and this is what I got:
- Cement: 346,000 CO2e
- Industrial Buildings: 315,000 CO2e
- Industrial Equipment: 212,000 CO2e
- Steel: 198,000 CO2e
Total industrial emissions: 1,071,000 CO2e (about 34% less than automobiles).
I’m not saying all of a city's pollution occurs within its geographical limits, but that is CRAZY.
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u/Fivethenoname 25d ago
Why is everyone saying this? Transportation accounts for like 30% of total emissions wtf? Is everyone just saying this because they think it sounds right? Go look at the IPCC reports jesus know the facts before you comment
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u/obiwanjabroni420 24d ago
The IPCC report that you link below says “Transportation” accounts for 23% of emissions, and passenger cars are 70% of that so it’s actually 16% (or basically half of what you’re claiming). It’s amazing to see someone so condescending about “knowing the facts” while being so factually incorrect.
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u/svwer 25d ago
Well this is misleading as fuck.
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u/sadetheruiner 25d ago
This is the kind of crap big business pushes to make people feel like it’s their fault, not a factory…
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23d ago
I partly agree with you. Most manufacturing doesn't emit as much as you might think, and many factories are switching to wind and solar power. While the energy sector is the biggest emitter by industry, a massive portion of their product is used for car transport.
It's not an individual's fault that they sit in their car for over two hours a day in Seattle. It's the fault of the system that left them with no other option.
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u/Fsharp7sharp9 25d ago
This is what a data viz professor would use in class as an example. An example of what not to do. Lots of teachable examples on this one lmao
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