When it comes to Thanksgiving, turns out the meal is a climate change turkey
It is rare to find something for which scientists cannot find a carbon footprint. And it turns out that Thanksgiving is no exception. The meal itself has an impact and so does the travel to the dinner table that millions of people make.
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Climate Trade puts the “Thanksgiving carbon footprint” at 2,369,000 tons of CO2, assuming the 46 million households in America have the meal.
The model dinner, of course, is made up of turkey, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, stuffing and pie. And it’s not just about what’s eaten, but also what is not. “Additionally,” Climate Trade continues, “the festivities surrounding Thanksgiving generate a concerning amount of food waste, a key contributor to methane emissions in landfills.”
The travel cost
As for travel emissions, according to AAA 52 million Americans will travel this long weekend, with most will traveling by car and 18 million more by airplane. Although it is impossible to nail down the CO2 emissions from air travel, air travel accounts for 2.5% of the world’s total. Cars account for one-fifth of all emissions in the U.S.
Better to stay home and have a sandwich.
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