How to Quit Flying
I am going to stop flying. I hope I will never fly again.
I won't promise it because I don't know what my life is going to look like or how the world may change or goodness knows what else but this is the goal. I want to stop flying in aeroplanes because they are by far the worst mode of transport for the planet that there is.
I haven't flown very many times in my life. I flew to Spain a couple of times when I was very small and don't really remember it. Beyond that, I flew last year on my travels to Peru in South America, having to take a total of 7 flights to get there and back. But I think that's it for me now. It's not worth it.
The privilege of having the option to fly.
I do realise that some people have never flown and will never fly in an aeroplane because it is simply not viable given their financial or socioeconomic status or if they live somewhere where it is not possible. I have friends who have never left Britain and friends who have never been able to afford to fly abroad.
I think it is very important to realise your privilege when you have the choice of flying or not flying because most people in the world cannot even make that choice because of their circumstances. It is a privileged position to be in to be able to fly and that needs to be recognised so that the people with money and power who do take flights are encouraged and in my opinion made to take fewer flights because they are the people who have the choice.
According to Oxfam, the "World’s richest 10% produce half of carbon emissions while poorest 3.5 billion account for just a tenth." This highlights the massive wealth inequalities in the world but also the inequalities of people's contributions to climate change.
We should always be encouraging those who have the money, privilege and choice to 'sacrifice' those things in life that contribute so much to climate change like flying to stop doing those polluting activities before we start encouraging anyone else who never even had the choice in the first place. I get very annoyed when people act like it is a massive sacrifice for them to be giving up something like flying when actually so many people in the world cannot afford that to start with.
So what is the impact of flying?
There are a lot of wasteful and polluting products caused by aeroplanes like Carbon dioxide (CO2), Oxides of nitrogen (NOx), Water vapour (H2O), contrails, and Particulates. These pollute the atmosphere and contribute to the greenhouse effect and climate change.
There are also other problems with flying which are not so directly linked to climate change but do have an effect on the environment and animals and humans health. For example, water pollution caused by the making and using of jet fuel and other chemicals needed to fly aeroplanes. Air quality can be highly impacted as can be seen through the contrails that planes make in the sky as a huge indicator for the impact on the air we all breathe.
Another huge problem is the infrastructure like airports, factories, runways which use up a huge amount of space inefficiently and without allowing rewilding or nature to take hold. Therefore space has to be cleared to build this infrastructure and is not given back to the environment unless the airport, for example, closes but then the site would probably be classed as a brownfield site where property develops would be allowed to build.
Alternative transports to flying.
Walk: This should always be the first choice. If you have the ability and capacity to walk your journey then you should do so. It will help to keep you fit and healthy, you will pass by people, nature and culture which may even brighten your day. And obviously, it is the best choice for the planet.
Bike: Having a bike can be really beneficial for commutes, days out, or exploring slightly further than you would be able to walk. Bikes can be found relatively cheaply on places like Facebook market place, Gumtree, or your local second-hand bike store. If you are on holiday or in a new place, you could always try out cycling around your neighbourhood by hiring a bike too. Bikes will also help to keep you fit and healthy and release those endorphins that come from exercise so if this is an option for you, I would recommend.
Public transport for short journeys - bus, tram, subway: I don't have so much experience of these modes of transport, however when taking shorter journeys for example within your city, this can be a really great option. More forms of public transport like this are starting to go electric so even if the electricity still currently comes from fossil fuels, there is the future possibility that is can come from renewable sources. It also means that there is significantly less air pollution in that city, like in London where the buses have all gone electric. They are also great because transport, where more people are travelling, is always more eco friendly than when there is only one person.
Train: Trains are my favourite mode of transport after cycling and walking because I do not get travel sick but also because they can take you on really long journeys and holidays but not be so bad for the planet. They can take you travelling and exploring so you don't need to worry about missing out on your bucket list and finding new places because it can still be a choice will a more eco-friendly transport choice. I hope that I am able to go by train when I travel myself to Europe or further afield so that I am being the most eco-friendly I can be.
Car: When you fill your car with people, it is more efficient than with just one person because the number of emissions and effects are shared between all the people in the car. Cars create bad fumes and air pollutions and one of my pet peeves are when someone is sat in their car with the engine running because it is so completely unnecessary and is just polluting the streets. Cars for short journeys, unless this is your only choice as a person who cannot use the aforementioned ideas, just annoy me because I know that they just cause queues and pollution and the journey would take a similar amount of time is walked or cycled.
Boat: This should definitely be the last choice apart from flying when choosing how to get from A to B, however, if you live on an island, like me in the UK, and the only other choice is the fly then getting a boat seems like the only choice. Although for the UK, the Eurostar train which travels under the English Channel is an option too. Boats, however, do cause air and noise pollution which pollutes the ocean/sea air and can disrupt sea creatures communications when the boats are very noisy.
Overall, we should all just try and take less journeys in motorised transport and especially for short journeys, we should consider the impact we are having when using a car and if that journey could be taken in a different way.
Sources:
Photo | Pexels Daria Shevtsova
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