The High-Altitude Footprint

Good morning! Today is Tuesday, June 30, 2026. With the World Cup well underway and it being peak travel season there is an overwhelming amount of flying all around the world. However, travel is especially busy within and into North America. The world cup is set to bring in 5 to 10 million international tourists! This means lots of flying and lots of greenhouse gas emissions. In today’s edition of The Environmental Edit, we will go over the environmental impacts of aviation.   

Just as cars, airplanes release carbon dioxide; lots of it. According to Fund the Planet in 2024, a round-trip flight from New York to London emits roughly 2,646 pounds of CO₂ per passenger. On a different thought, it is not only the plane that contributes to the carbon footprint of flying; it is everything involved with the airport. This includes transport to and from the airport, maintenance vehicles, and CO₂ released from the construction of large-international airports. Overall, flying contributes about 4% of global human-caused climate change. What makes flying even more dangerous to our atmosphere is its location in which CO₂ is being emitted: in the upper atmosphere. Once in the upper atmosphere, this carbon dioxide stays for centuries. Through its tenure in the atmosphere, CO₂ and other greenhouse gases warm up the planet at a nerve-racking rate.

Why Now?

With it being peak travel season and an increased amount of tourism via the World Cup carbon dioxide emissions are dramatically increasing. During the group stage of the World Cup, the Uzbekistan National Team logged about 9,600 miles of airtime. This trend was present with all other teams and will continue throughout the summer.

Not Just Air Pollution

While air pollution is the obvious target when discussing the environmental impacts of aviation, noise and water pollution are very relevant. To start, airports are some of the noisiest locations on earth, and animals can be severely disturbed. Birds must alter their natural migration paths, native animals lose their habitats, animals are unable to communicate, and they are unable to mate. Our water is also polluted; airports can contaminated local bodies of water with runoff that contain jet fuel and other toxins.

This week’s news is a hot one! Currently there is an extreme heatwave engulfing Europe and some parts of the United States. Multiple European cities are suffering record high temperatures with no AC! Just to name a few: Bordeaux, France- 112.3 F, Prague, Czech Republic- 106 F, Budapest, Hungary- 104 F. Unfortunately, there has already been 1,300 deaths linked with the heat wave. A major contributor to this heatwave is human-induced climate change that is a significant cause to global warming.

Aside from carbon dioxide (CO₂), what airplane byproduct traps the most heat in our atmosphere?

A. The loud noise made during takeoff and landing.

B. White condensation trails (contrails) that form clouds.

C. Sonic booms vibrating the upper air layers.

D. Extra fuel burned from carrying heavy passenger luggage.

Correct answer at the end of the newsletter!

People need to get places. That is unavoidable. If possible, try to drive to your preferred location. Even if it is a long drive it is protecting our atmosphere and reducing your personal carbon footprint- also in most cases it's cheaper. However, if you must fly, there are ways that flyers can reduce their carbon footprint when choosing flights. It is best to avoid flights that include multiple legs to a trip; try to stay on one aircraft. Another easy way to decide on a flight in environmental interest is simply going to google flights, browsing all options, and noting how many kg of CO₂ are involved with your trip. It is always best to pick the most environmentally efficient ticket- besides the end destination is always the same.

That will wrap up this week’s edition of The Environmental Edit. Going forward, be mindful with decisions involving travel and aviation. Mindfulness and awareness are necessary in the fight towards preventing climate change. So, on that note, share this with friends and family to help build awareness. The answer was B. Have a terrific rest of your Tuesday and stay cool! Tuesdys for a greener tomorrow.