TRAVEL AND
SUSTAINABILITY
Travelling via plane sure sounds like the
fastest and easiest way to move around.
Many of us, especially international students, take
a plane multiple times a year, for example to go
back to their home country, while ignoring or not
being aware of the impact aircrafts have on the
environment. Obviously, we don’t have the option
to sail from Europe to America or take a train to
Australia, so of course, in those cases plus many
others, travelling by plane is the only option.
“Taking one
return flight
generates more
CO2 emissions than
some countries
produce in a year”
But what about European and national flights?
Are they really unavoidable? It is important to
realize how damaging flying is for the planet and
the amount of CO2 emissions that are generated.
Consider that taking one return flight generates
more CO2 emissions than some countries produce
in a year. In fact, according to Ethical.net, if flying
was a country, it would be the seventh biggest
polluter in the world.
Let’s talk numbers
For example, only a return flight Amsterdam -
London generates 63.3 kg of CO2, while the
suggested amount of CO2 per person to fight
climate change is supposed to be 600 kg per year.
Sounds crazy, right? To make it sound even crazier,
keep in mind that a single person in the EU generates
annually 8400 kg of CO2. On the other hand,
the same journey by train (in this case Eurostar)
generates “only” 10.7 kg CO2 emissions.
Not perfect, but definitely better. Plus, not
only CO2, but many other substances are
released by an aircraft for it to be able to fly
at high altitudes, which are twice as harmful.
What’s being done?
As many are becoming more and more aware
of the impact that flying has, there are many
campaigns being created that aim to push
people to fly less and, most importantly, to make
the government take action. Last December
2019, an important campaign was carried out
by Greenpeace, in the Netherlands, regarding
Schiphol. Their cause focused on the fact that
the Schiphol Group (which owns Schiphol plus the
airports of Rotterdam, Lelystad and Eindhoven)
emits every year 13.6 Megatons of CO2 and
4.780 million liters of kerosene, on which they are
not even taxed upon. While Schiphol is planning
on expanding, Greenpeace demanded the closing
of the small airport of Lelystad and the reduction
of departing and arriving flights. Whether their
protest was effective or no, only time will tell.
It’s undeniable, though, that action must be taken.
Some ideas
So, it is now clear that travelling by train is by far
more sustainable than by plane and there are
many cheap options for a student to be able to
plan a holiday while keeping an eye on the planet.
Going on Interrail is one of them. You can
travel to 40.000 destinations all over 33
countries, for periods of a week to 3 months.
The prices are very convenient and the
experience that comes from it is more than unique.
Moreover, thanks to the central position that
the Netherlands have in Europe, there are
many trains options to get in a few hours
to big cities like Berlin, Paris, London, Brussels
and many more destinations like Czech
Republic, Austria, Denmark and Italy.
Everyone should take advantage of
this opportunity.
Another cheap and environmentally friendly way
of travelling is by bus! Many companies provide
you with this service like Eurolines and Flixbus,
which run throughout Europe for very affordable
prices. With Eurolines you can even get a pass
and travel throughout 49 countries in a month.
It really comes to show that travelling has
never been this easy.
So, where
are you going
for your next
sustainable
holiday?
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