Scientists worldwide, including all personal of CNRS, must join the world’s efforts to reduce CO2 emissions from their activities in order to limit global warming. For that CNRS has developed a low-carbon transition plan.
While research has to reduce the impact on climate change, at the same time scientists are responsible for conducting research which brings forward new technologies that can mitigate societies impact on climate. Therefore, scientists should not be limited in their activities beyond a level that hinders them to fulfill their mission. There is no doubt that greenhouse gas emissions from research must be accounted for differently than emissions from “optional” activities, like for pleasure or convenience purposes.
A research group has been formed by CNRS [GDR Labos 1point5] which offers tools to laboratories to estimate their carbon footprint. Our lab, like many other labs, have employed these tools to estimate its contribution to CO2 emissions from various sources such as building operations, commute to work, missions, etc. This is a very positive initiative as it creates awareness for the impact of various factors associated with our research activities. As a next step, labs have started, on an individual level, to develop action plans to reduce CO2 emissions, and adopted the plans by voting of their members. This procedure is creating different actions across different labs, with relative strong limitations on future missions of researchers (using air travel). This raises a number of concerns:
- It appears perverse that scientist in France get more limited in their long distance air travel than the general population. For example, in 2018 all CNRS personal contributed 300 million passenger kilometers which has to be compared to 255.000 million passenger kilometers of AirFrance group in the same year. Hence, CNRS has contributed 0.12% relative to the total AirFrance passenger kilometers, and a reduction of air travel within CNRS makes only an substantial impact if all other air travel is reduced at the same rate. When some laboratories action plans ask for a long term reduction of long haul flights to 1/3 or less of the current level, AirFrance must reduce ticket sale at the same level globally. It should be noted that it is already current strategy to use train for all travel below four hours which is certainly justified.
- Within CNRS missions contributed only 13% of all CO2 emissions overall in 2019, while commute to work accounts for 6% of CO2 emissions. The largest causes for emissions are material, instruments and non-capital purchases. Therefore, there is huge potential to reduce CO2 emissions without restricting essential missions to conduct joint research, and important scientific exchange at conferences, workshops, etc.
- Strategies for reducing greenhouse gas emissions should not be made on the level of individual labs in France. What is needed is a global strategy by the worldwide science community, including the responsible ministries, research agencies, and funding agencies. Currently, leading research nations such as the United States, Germany and Italy do not impose any concrete constraints on scientist’s missions.
- The estimates made by individual laboratories are error prone as often a number of assumptions must be made, and implementation of provided tools are somewhat subjective.
- Laboratory strategies have created some absurdities such as the proposal of heavily reduced air travel for labs hosted in new and energy efficient buildings as this circumstance amplifies their relative contribution of missions!
While we as scientists should be aware of the emissions and impact on climate we cause by all our actions (not only scientific), we also have to fulfill out mission to society: Bring forward research and help developing technology that reduce the CO2 emissions from all of us.