Opinion: Low- and middle-class Bay Area residents shouldn't be scapegoated by rich energy-wasters
When it comes to greenhouse gas emissions, let's stop pointing fingers at everyday residents (and demanding they undergo costly conversions to renewable-powered homes), remarks Euronews. The nation's wealthiest 10% are consuming 40% of GHG emissions, according to a new PLOS Climate study.
The richest 10 per cent of US households are responsible for 40 per cent of the country’s greenhouse gas emissions, a new study reveals....
The study, published in the PLOS Climate journal, examined data on emissions generated by the way people earn money. This included types of jobs along with retirement and passive income from investments that support polluting industries.
Analysing the incomes and emissions of five million US individuals between 1990 and 2019, it found a “significant and growing emissions inequality that cuts across economic and racial lines.”
The richest 1 per cent of households were found to be responsible for 15 to 17 per cent of all emissions in the US. Of this, 38 to 43 per cent was tied to investments.
This article originally appeared in Euronews. Read the whole thing here.
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