Toyota Ad from Israel Compares Emissions from Prius and... Sheep

Photo: Toyota
The Atmosphere Doesn't Care Where Greenhouse Gases Come From
It's a clever ad, and a good reminder that transportation and energy production aren't the only sources of greenhouse gas (GHG). Methane, which is copiously produced by ruminants like cows and sheep, has an effective atmospheric lifetime activity of around 21 times that of CO2, which means that every unit of methane emitted has the equivalent effect of about 21 units of CO2 per equal time interval. But is the ad literally accurate? That's harder to determine since there are lots of variables, enough to make it apples & oranges. But I think we can give Toyota the benefit of the doubt and say that under certain circumstances a Prius can produce fewer greenhouse gas emissions than a sheep over a certain period of time. But the real takeaway shouldn't be that the Prius doesn't produce much GHG, but rather that livestock produces a lot. Via Coloribus, ABG. See also: Sonata Hybrid Drives 2269.3 Miles Across U.S.A. On Less Than 2 Tanks of Fuel

Tags: Agriculture | Hybrid Cars | Transportation


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