CO2 doesn't know borders, but we are shipping embodied carbon all over the world

CO2 doesn't know borders, but we are shipping embodied carbon all over the world

Brad Plumer looks at the issue of "outsourced pollution."

We go on a lot about embodied carbon; it is the main reason we love wood construction so much. We love local materials too, because one is not offshoring the CO2 to China. It is often controversial, but now the New York Times is on it. And by Grabthar’s Hammer, it is like that scene from Galaxy Quest where Jason tells Brandon: “IT’S ALL REAL!” - the title for Brad Plumer’s story is You’ve Heard of Outsourced Jobs, but Outsourced Pollution? It’s Real, and Tough to Tally Up.

Plumer points out that the US and Europe have reduced their carbon footprint from manufacturing.

But those efforts look a lot less impressive once you take trade into account. Many wealthy countries have effectively “outsourced” a big chunk of their carbon pollution overseas, by importing more steel, cement and other goods from factories in China and other places, rather than producing it domestically.

© The carbon loophole in climate policy

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