by Oliver Milman, The Guardian
Highlights
- SUVs were the second largest cause of the global rise in carbon dioxide emissions over the past decade, surpassing all shipping, aviation, heavy industry, and trucks
- There are more than 200 million SUVs on the road, emitting 700 megatonnes of CO2, about the entire output of the UK and Netherlands combined
- In 2019 SUVs surpassed 40% of all car sales worldwide for the first time.
- In the US, SUVs emit 14% more carbon dioxide than small passenger cars on average because they require more energy to move around
- Sebastian Castellanos, a researcher at the New Urban Mobility Alliance stresses the importance of decarbonizing transportation:
“To avert the worst of the climate catastrophe, the transport sector needs to be completely decarbonized…With the explosion in SUV sales, we are moving even farther away from our goal of decarbonizing the sector.”
- Americans have grown deeply attached to car culture and SUVs. In order to sever these ties, a reimagining of US towns and cities as places largely without cars is needed
The Climate Center’s Climate-Safe California campaign calls for investments and bold policies to support clean mobility, including a phase-out of all gas-powered vehicles.
Nina Turner
Energy Programs and Communications CoordinatorJanina is a graduate of the Energy Management and Design program at Sonoma State University with experience in non-profits that specialize in sustainability and volunteerism.
