A recent report has revealed the shocking carbon footprint of our world's billionaires.
They say that we're killing the planet, but when they say 'we', they should really be saying billionaires. From Elon Musk to Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg to Bill Gates, billionaires love nothing more than flying around the world in their private jets. Taylor Swift isn't even a billionaire, but she's known for taking her private jets on quick jaunts as she's accused of pumping the atmosphere full of harmful fumes.
While we could all do our bit to try and save the planet more, it's apparently billionaires who are doing more harm than the rest of us (go figure), with the average billionaire emitting more carbon pollution in 90 minutes than the average 'normal' person does in their entire lifetime.
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According to Oxfam, billionaires are their own factory of fumes, emitting more than we ever could in just an hour and a half. The charity's "Carbon Inequality Kills" study tracked emissions from private jets, yachts and polluting investments, arguing that super-rich are 'fueling inequality, hunger and death across the world.' Oxfam released the report ahead of the COP29 in Azerbaijan, highlighting concerns that climate breakdown is being accelerated by some of the world's richest people.
When it comes to specific culprits, Jeff Bezos is top of the hit list.
Oxfam says that the world's 50 richest billionaires took 184 flights a single year, racking up a whopping 425 hours in the air and producing as much carbon as the average person would in 300 years. In the same timeframe, their yachts produced as much carbon as the average person would in 860 years.
As for Bezos, his two private jets were up in the skies for nearly 25 days in the 12-month period, pumping out the same amount of carbon as the average US Amazon employee would in 207 years.
Bezos isn't alone in being a bad billionaire, with the Walmart heirs of the Walton family producing enough carbon in a year with their three superyachts to match 1,714 Walmart shop workers.
Oxfam warns that if the world continues with its current emissions, the amount of CO2 that can still be added to the atmosphere without raising global temperatures by 1.5°C (known as the carbon budget) will be depleted in around four years. If our emissions matched those of the riches one percent, the carbon budget would be used in less than five months. If we started emitting as much carbon as the average billionaire does through jets and superyachts, the carbon budget would be depleted in just two days.
It's not just how billionaires get around, as Oxfam says the average investment emissions of the 50 richest billionaires are about 340 times more than their emissions from jets and superyachts combined. 40% of those looked into are involved in highly polluting industries like oil or mining.
While we're doubtful Oxfam's report will stop Bezos from hopping on his private jet, the study gravely predicts that 78% of deaths due to heat in 2120 will occur in lower income countries that are being ravaged by climate change. Next time, maybe Bezos could get the electric bus instead.