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(Transportation-News.com, July 08, 2013 ) Alberta, Canada -- When it comes to carbon footprints, a new study conducted by the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis in partnership with the Centre for International Climate and Environmental Research – Oslo, finds traveling long distances by car alone is as bad as air travel. The results of the study were recently published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology. Research Scholar on the Mitigation of Air Pollution and Greenhouse Gases at the Institute, Jens Borken-Kleefeld, co-authored the publication. He says the formula used was globally applicable.
"We took the example of Europe because we come from here and we understand the transport systems here, but the chemical and physical mechanism works the same," said Borken-Kleefeld. "If you want to adapt the study to Australia, I think you have to choose the right aircraft – this isn't a big deal because there's only two air companies globally, so it's either Boeing or Airbus that you're flying. The trickier variable is the amount of pollution that's coming out from the engines."
The researchers formulated the climate impacts for a travel distance of between 500 km and 1000 km using different forms of transportation. The travel distance was estimated to be the distance of a typical business or holiday trip. They then calculated the carbon impacts of the mode of transportation using variables such as fuel efficiency and vehicle occupancy to produce climate impact over time.
Automobile vs. Air
Air travel, per person and per distance travelled, was shown to have the biggest climate impact. The impact doubled when "short-term climate forcers" such as condensation trails called cirrus clouds and ozone were considered.
Coaches and trains were shown to have the least climate impact overall. However, just two people in a small diesel car could leave a smaller carbon footprint than the typical coach or train. Driving solo on the other hand left a similar carbon footprint as that of air travel.
Planes, Trains and Automobiles
"What the study does indicate is there's a fairly substantial climate impact saving from switching away from aircraft to trains or diesel coaches, so certainly this could be used as a starting point for further consideration for a high-speed rail option," said Jago Dodson, Director of the Urban Research Program at Griffith University, Australia. He was not involved in the study.
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Source: EmailWire.Com 
Source: EmailWire.com
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