Will Russia-Ukraine War Push The Climate Change Action To The Side?

While the Russia-Ukraine war is already affecting thousands of people, the effects won’t be trivial by any means, in the future as well.

Increased Sanctions To Play Their Role In Global Pollution

The growing sanctions on trade with Russia will not only make the economies of both European states & Russia suffer but will also put significant stress on the global climate.

Several countries on the continent, especially Germany, are extremely reliant on Russian gas whereas Russia itself has an economy that is overly reliant on its oil & gas reserves.

Will The War Revert Our Efforts?

Under the current war situation, one question that has been boggling the minds of experts is that will this war send us back in time? Well, not just financially this time, but also in terms of the efforts we have put in to mitigate the climate change issues.

More Carbon Emitted To The Atmosphere

When the EU, the US and other major countries announced their sanctions to Russia, the airspace over Russia has been closed. Now airlines have to reroute flights to avoid both Russian and Ukrainian airspace which adds extra hours to flights.

With flights times increasing, so is the fuel burn. All this is leading to greater emissions and a higher carbon footprint.

Air Travel Has Become Too Costly Due To The Russia-Ukraine War

Besides this, soaring gas prices have increased inflation already. Such upsurges are not just affecting the prices of wheat & bread but even air travel has become more expensive.

Russia is a huge country and with thousands of planes now not being able to fly over it, the prices of airline tickets have increased considerably.

Another dimension in which the war is affecting the global economy is the decrease in tourism. The prime reason for this decline is the loss of Russian tourists who would not be able to leave their home country.

Emitting Carbon Into The Atmosphere Just Got Cheaper

The recent war has also contributed to lowering the EU carbon permit prices.

This means that companies that previously had to pay hefty amounts for polluting the environment now get a green signal to do so because of reduced rates.

These permit prices were launched in 2005 to ensure that companies reduce carbon emissions.

What Are The Prices Of EU Carbon Permits?

This February the permit prices touched their highest ever point of €97. This was mainly because of the positive impact that the EU regulations had brought on the environment. In this way, the planet was becoming a safer place to live.

However, this Wednesday the permit price hit €60 which was its lowest value since 2014.

UK’s Business Secretary Has Some Worth-Noting Considerations

While European countries had focused much on the shift to renewable energy sources, under the recent situation, the UK’s Business Secretary has emphasized expanding the following:

– Renewable capacity;

– North Sea oil & gas production.

If the second option is chosen, it will require a multibillion-euro investment which will necessitate the country to use these fossil fuels for offsetting the additional funds invested in the project.

In this manner, the plan to transition completely to net-zero emissions will be pushed back several years and thus carbon emissions will increase.

Climate Threat Is Treacherous

The threat posed by climate change is critical. As a result, it should never be relegated to the background. Countries that do not invest enough in this field will suffer greatly in the long run.

The war is not just hurting people and their belongings, it is hurting the planet too. That’s why we need to save not just human lives and their valuable resources but also the planet.