Marketing and analytics agency Yard recently published a list naming the celebs with the worst private jet carbon emissions based on the purported use of their privately owned jet planes since the start of the year by examining flight tracking maps.
Taylor Swift is reportedly the biggest emitter on the list. With a total of 170 flights in the past seven months, Taylor’s jet emitted more than 8,000 tonnes of carbon emissions, equates to 1,184.8 times more than the average person’s total emissions in an entire year.
Taylor’s representative said that Taylor often rents out her jet to other individuals, so it’s incorrect to put all the blame on her.
According to Yard, celebs on the list have emitted an average of 3376.64 tonnes of CO2 in 2022 so far by just using their private jet, which is 482.37 times more than the average person’s annual emissions.
Kim Kardashian's private jet made four flights under 20 minutes in the previous two months. She made a 40-mile, 10-minute journey between Van Nuys and Camarillo, California on July 24. The trip used 81 gallons of fuel and emitted 1 tonne of CO2, equivalent to a gas-powered car emits in six-month driving.
Hiphop star Drake also uses his customized Boeing 767, “Air Drake,” for short hops. He made five short flights between 30 May and 24 July 2022, having spewed the most planet-heating emissions among all due to its size, and emitted 21 tonnes of CO2. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, these emissions are equal to what four US households’ energy consumption for a year.
Additionally, private planes owned by Steven Spielberg, Mark Wahlberg, and boxer Floyd Mayweather also made short flights.
“Aviation is responsible for 2.4% of human-produced CO2e every year, and research shows a vast divide between the super-rich and the rest of us regarding flights, travel, and even general emissions,” wrote Yard’s sustainability director Chris Butterworth in the report.
According to an analysis of European flights over a distance of 310 miles (500km), private jet flights produce five to fourteen times higher emissions per passenger than a mostly full commercial airplane. A report from the NGO Transport & Environment also claims that private flights produce 50 times more than a train.
Celebs on the private jet emitters list has attracted widespread criticism and some social media users even call them “climate criminals.” However, none of these celebs addresses this issue officially or provides proper solutions so far.
