The study, which also calculated the impact of a birth beyond the child’s lifetime “if the offspring were to reproduce”, said each American child generated seven times more carbon dioxide. over time than a child in China, and 169 times more than a child in China. Bangladesh. Reducing car travel, recycling and improving the energy efficiency of homes would have a fraction of the impact on emissions that reducing the birth rate would have, he found.
“There are important consequences of having children, and we tried to quantify them,” said Paul A. Murtaugh, associate professor of statistics and one of the study’s co-authors. “It should be on the table. It must.
Some groups, such as the World Wide Fund for Nature and Conservation International, said they work on population-related issues. essentially international issues. The president of the National Audubon Society declined an interview without explanation. The president of the Green Group, a loose association of several dozen environmental organizations, did not respond to calls or emails.
Natural Resources Defense Council President Frances Beinecke said her group is focused on addressing climate change through energy strategies and conservation efforts. “Particularly in this economic environment, we are not in a position to just add, add, add,” Ms Beinecke said of her group’s agenda.
Kevin Knobloch, president of the Union of Concerned Scientists, said research into cutting emissions by lowering birth rates was not yet ‘robust’ enough to make a compelling case for a way forward Claire.
A country’s carbon footprint doesn’t necessarily decrease when the birth rate drops, Knobloch said. In India and China, he pointed out, small families consumed more as their incomes rose – a common trend in developing countries. “It becomes complex very quickly,” he said.
Carl Pope, president of the Sierra Club, said his organization now has a population officer on staff who works on international reproductive health services. In this country, Mr. Pope said, there are reasons to keep a low profile on the issue.