There has been a dramatic reduction in greenhouse gas emissions globally since the Coronavirus pandemic forced a lockdown in most countries. If preliminary data is anything that we can go by, there looks to be a drop in emissions, the likes of which have never been seen before. China, which has 18 or the world’s top 20 polluting cities has reported a drop of 18.5%. Europe has seen a reduction of almost 400 million metric tonnes of CO2.
This equates to almost 10% of the annual emissions from Europe. Everyone accepts that this is a welcome reprieve from the status quo, but it’s great to see the CO2 numbers heading in the direction everyone wants, even if it is only for a short period.