Listen to the podcast.

A Billion Cars on the Road

Efforts to slow global warming have picked up in recent years, with the growth of alternative fuel technologies, increasing public awareness and a growing willingness among nations and private industry to take steps toward reducing greenhouse gases.

But a new study suggests it won’t be nearly enough to make up for the staggering rise in the number of cars expected to hit the road by mid-century, unless far more substantial steps are taken to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from personal vehicles.

A study by researchers at the Austrian Institute of Economic Research predicts the number of private cars being driven worldwide will more than double by 2050 – pushing the level of carbon dioxide emissions from an annual 2 gigatonnes to as much as 8 gigatonnes per year.

Emissions from all forms of transportation are increasing in Asia, for example, where fewer people are using bicycles and a growing number are purchasing automobiles. In China, the emissions growth rate is 6.4 percent a year – twice as fast as emissions growth in the rest of the world.

Researchers estimate more than 600 cars are currently being driven worldwide. If this prediction proves accurate, we could end up with as many as 2.7 billion cars spewing carbon dioxide emissions in the next few decades. The question now becomes, will we make big enough strides in alternative fuels in the meantime? Or will global warming accelerate at an even faster pace?

For more information about this story, click here.   

To find out what you can do to help slow global warming and conserve energy, please visit www.fightglobalwarming.com.

To read more about this and other environmental health issues, go to: www.environmentalhealthnews.org, www.ourstolenfuture.org, or www.healthandenvironment.org