We're all familiar with the concept of a carbon footprint and how our energy usage contributes to rising CO2 emissions, however, new research has put this accountability into context by calculating individual contribution to Arctic sea ice melt. The researchers estimate that a tonne of CO2 contributes to summer sea ice loss of 3m2. This translates to the melting of 24m2 of Arctic sea ice for the average UK resident. What's more, this research calls into question the 2°C global warming target, suggesting that the extra 1000 gigatons of CO2 released with 2°C warming would be enough for Arctic summer sea ice to disappear. The 1.5°C target agreed at COP21 would make the survival of Arctic summer sea ice a more realistic prospect.
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| How much Arctic summer sea ice loss are we causing? |
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