"COVID-19..." CO2 Emissions Reduced by 1.551 Billion Tons in the First Half of the Year

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Yuri] Due to the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), carbon dioxide emissions in the first half of this year decreased by 1.551 billion tons compared to the same period last year. This is considered a significant decline, with the reduction being greater than that during World War II.

According to the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), a German national research institute, an international research team led by Associate Professor Liu Zhu of the Department of Earth Sciences at Tsinghua University in China analyzed the impact of COVID-19 based on data from Carbon Monitor, which compiles and publishes daily carbon dioxide emission statistics. Their findings were published in the scientific journal Nature Communications.

The research team stated, "Carbon dioxide emissions in the first half of this year decreased by 1.551 billion tons (8.8%) compared to the same period last year, which is a larger reduction than during the 2008 financial crisis, the 1979 oil shock, and even World War II."

The team estimated that in April, during the first wave of COVID-19 infections when major countries worldwide partially shut down economic activities and people refrained from daily activities, carbon dioxide emissions dropped by 16.9%. Emissions from ground transportation decreased by approximately 40%, which the team attributed to many people staying at home. Emissions from power plants and industrial sectors also decreased by 22% and 17%, respectively.

The research team compiled carbon dioxide emission data based on hourly electricity production data from 31 countries, daily traffic volume data from over 400 cities, daily flight operation data worldwide, monthly production data from 62 countries, and building fuel consumption data from over 200 countries.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.