Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Save the World: Don’t Have Children

Not only are children a huge responsibility, but they contribute to a huge carbon legacy on the planet. A study conducted by Oregon State University, entitled Reproduction and Carbon Legacies of Individuals, tested the effect that reproduction has on the environment.

No matter how much you try to change your lifestyle to be more environmentally conscious, having children hinders this goal. You can drive hybrids, change all your light bulbs, and all windows, but according to the study, you would only save 486 tons of CO2 emission in a life time. However as soon as an average woman gives birth to two children her carbon emissions hit 40 times what she usually would create (18,882 ton over her life time). By replacing light bulbs you save 36 tons of emission, increasing fuel economy saves 148, and if you choose to save by only having one child instead of two you can save up to 9,441 tons. Even though the small saving doesn’t seem like much, it adds up on a large scale. True environmentalist would rethink the amount of children they wish to conceive.

These statistics also depend on where you live, “the average emissions added by having a single child range from 56 t (Bangladesh) to 9441 t (United States)” (Murtaugh 2009). The reason for this large statistical gap is because of the difference in quality of life, day to day activity and even the fact that everything in North America is extremely spaced out. In Europe you can drive for two hours and be in a different country, while in North America it takes two hours just to get to the next city. Day to day life is also extremely different around the world “the constant-emission scenario, an extra child born to a woman in the United States ultimately increases her carbon legacy by an amount (9441 metric tons) that is nearly seven times the analogous quantity for a woman in China (1384 tons), but because of China’s enormous population size, its total carbon emissions currently exceed those of the United States” (Murtaugh 2009); People in North America rely on many things that people elsewhere would never think was a necessity. North Americans drive everywhere because everything is so spaced out, in China an entire family will pile onto a small bike to get from place to place, image the emissions they are saving over time. Also the things we take for granted everyday like air conditioning and indoor plumbing adds to our high CO2 emission production.

According to the study a parent is also responsible for their offspring’s and that of the further generations’ emissions. “A mother and father are each responsible for one half of the emissions of their offspring and ¼ of the emissions of their grandchildren” (Murtaugh 2009). No matter how hard you try you are always responsible for your children’s negative effects on the world.

As much as these facts deter you from wanting to have children, you are going to have a family or you already do. These are the facts of life, and the consequences that come with it. Do what you can to save, because even though it seems small it’s a big help in the long run. If you are expecting, keep in mind how your life choices affect the world and the place we all call home.

Reference:

Murtaugh, P. A. (2009). Reproduction and the Carbon Legacies of Individuals. Global Environmental Change, 19(1), Retrieved from http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6VFV-4V8FFCG-1&_user=10&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=search&_sort=d&_docanchor=&view=c&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=411a4bfd17ad84a0d2fd4c0a9061c717

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