• zephyreks@lemmy.ca
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    5
    ·
    edit-2
    1 year ago

    From a per-distance standpoint a flight is hardly any worse than driving alone. Cars are just that bad for the environment (and have fewer inspections for compliance and can afford to dump more particulates into the environment).

    The single most environmentally destructive thing that people can do is drive. Fortunately, it’s also the single most lethal thing that people can do. Even more fortunately, it’s also insanely expensive to do. Even more more fortunately, a lack of car-based development allows for greater density and thus reduced mobility needs in general.

    In working papers released over the past two years, Sivak has attempted to overturn the conventional wisdom: His main recent finding is that the average energy intensity of driving is about twice that of flying, a conclusion based on the current average on-road fuel economy of cars, pick-up trucks, SUVs, and vans (21.6 mpg).