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Developed countries actually are doing relatively well when it comes to CO2 emissions. EU reduced theirs in 25% the last 30 years. USA and most of others mainta

by wtdata 7y ago

Developed countries actually are doing relatively well when it comes to CO2 emissions. EU reduced theirs in 25% the last 30 years. USA and most of others maintained them in those 30 years. It's mainly China (it increased theirs in 300% in 30 years) that is the problem. Legislation and treaties ate mostly worthless, when only the developed world does what they actually agree to, while China keeps making empty promises that they never fulfill. ---- P.S. I also don't think that environmental data per capita makes much sense. What we should be looking at is environment metrics per land/sea area: you (a country) has control over a part of the planet, so they have to use that part in a way that they don't over tax those natural resources (for CO2 this is basically directly proportional to the full area of the country).

perfunctory 7y ago
> It's mainly China (it increased theirs in 300% in 30 years) that is the problem. "This is because such a large share of China’s emissions is from the production of goods consumed in rich countries."
anthuman 7y ago
EU didn't reduce anything. The just shifted a significant part of their emissions to china. Just like they shifted a ton of their plastic and garbage to china. Most of china's emissions, pollution, environment damage has been to manufacture goods for EU and the US. Europe and the US are responsible for most of the pollution and emissions. It's the price for a high standard of living in a consumer economy. It's why chinese cities and rivers are polluted and why american and european cities and rivers are clean. But going forward, as china shifts from a manufacturing to a consumer economy, they are going to be responsible for a tremendous amount of emissions themselves. And the manufacturing will shift to poorer/cheaper ASEAN countries or India and eventually africa. What happens after that, I haven't a clue. The global economic system has been to exploit cheaper labor. What happens when the last cheap labor source has been exploited? If the chinese want to live like an american or a european, then the environment is going to suffer. Then India, ASEAN and africa would want to live like the chinese. Then the environment is going to suffer even more. It's a hard sell to get the west to lower our standard of living. It's an even harder sell to tell the developing world to accept their lower standard of living.
- wtdata 7y ago
  It's the new-age version of the Western exceptionalism: Everything that happens in the world - as long as it is bad - should be attributed to the West. Most people pretending to care about the environment, aren't really interested in protecting the environment from those that destroy it at all, they are just interested in - by any way - attack the foundations of Western countries so that they can build their dystopian dream from its ashes. Of course that while they do that, China, and soon India, will pollute so much that will make it extremely difficult to live in here. But, that's really a small price to pay to make the West pay for their sins of the past - real or imaginary.

by wtdata 7y ago

perfunctory 7y ago

> It's mainly China (it increased theirs in 300% in 30 years) that is the problem. "This is because such a large share of China’s emissions is from the production of goods consumed in rich countries."

anthuman 7y ago

EU didn't reduce anything. The just shifted a significant part of their emissions to china. Just like they shifted a ton of their plastic and garbage to china. Most of china's emissions, pollution, environment damage has been to manufacture goods for EU and the US. Europe and the US are responsible for most of the pollution and emissions. It's the price for a high standard of living in a consumer economy. It's why chinese cities and rivers are polluted and why american and european cities and rivers are clean. But going forward, as china shifts from a manufacturing to a consumer economy, they are going to be responsible for a tremendous amount of emissions themselves. And the manufacturing will shift to poorer/cheaper ASEAN countries or India and eventually africa. What happens after that, I haven't a clue. The global economic system has been to exploit cheaper labor. What happens when the last cheap labor source has been exploited? If the chinese want to live like an american or a european, then the environment is going to suffer. Then India, ASEAN and africa would want to live like the chinese. Then the environment is going to suffer even more. It's a hard sell to get the west to lower our standard of living. It's an even harder sell to tell the developing world to accept their lower standard of living.

wtdata 7y ago
It's the new-age version of the Western exceptionalism: Everything that happens in the world - as long as it is bad - should be attributed to the West. Most people pretending to care about the environment, aren't really interested in protecting the environment from those that destroy it at all, they are just interested in - by any way - attack the foundations of Western countries so that they can build their dystopian dream from its ashes. Of course that while they do that, China, and soon India, will pollute so much that will make it extremely difficult to live in here. But, that's really a small price to pay to make the West pay for their sins of the past - real or imaginary.