Pollution by Private Jet
Our Earth is warming up and each person plays a role in that change. To fight this change, we can “sip from paper straws, limit meat consumption, and drive electric cars”. We can do all these things but still feel powerless when we see others carelessly pollute the earth. It makes our efforts seem unimportant.
Many celebrities were recently called out for their private jet use. @celebjets, a celebrity jet tracker exposed many celebrities for their careless private jet flights in the wake of a severe climate crisis. Drake, The Kardashians, and Taylor Swift are among some of the worst private jet polluters.
When discussing carbon emissions released from private jets, the BBC stated, “Emissions per kilometer traveled are known to be significantly worse than any other form of transport”. Private jets remain the worst form of transportation for the environment.
Taylor Swift Among Others, Named Number One Polluter
The initial controversy was sparked when a flight tracker exposed Kylie Jenner for taking a 3-minute flight. This controversy led people to examine many celebrities and their private jet usage. According to Insider, Taylor Swift produced the most CO2 this year with her private jet. By taking 170 flights alone, her carbon emissions total 8,293.54 tons!
However, Swift desperately tried to defend herself by claiming that she wasn’t on most of those private jet flights. Swift claims to regularly loan out her jet for others to use. Furthermore, the short private jet flights pose a much bigger problem than the longer ones. Many argue that very famous celebrities need to travel by private jet as their presence in an airport would cause too much commotion. While this can be true for longer flights, taking short 20-minute flights that can be done by car is where the issue lies.
Moreover, while most people are upset with celebrities some are defending their private jet usage. “This “banning private jets” discourse is so dumb. Imagine if Kylie Jenner, Drake or Taylor Swift tried to take a commercial flight. There would be absolute chaos with gridlock in the airport. People would swarm them and no one would make their flights…”
Should We Take Mine or Yours?
Moreover, many people have flocked to social media to share their opinions on celebrities’ personal Instagram pages. Kylie Jenner recently posted an Instagram photo with her and Travis Scott with their jets in the background. The caption read “Do you Want to Take Yours or Mine?” Many people were outraged by this display of tone deafness and utter carelessness. Some of the comments on her photo are “But it’s us who must use paper straws” and “Girl what am I recycling for?”.
Moreover, Kim Kardashian is a heavy polluter taking 57 private flights this year and emitting roughly 4,000 tons of CO2.
Also, Drake is among celebrities who frequently take short private jet rides. According to The Guardian, Drake was accused of taking multiple flights lasting less than 20 minutes. In an attempt to defend himself, Drake argued that these flights had no passengers on board and were relocation flights. However, many people pointed out that this actually makes him look worse.
Better Solutions
Many other forms of transportation cause significantly fewer carbon emissions. When traveling short distances, celebrities should travel by car instead of taking a private jet flight. If it is a longer trip, the ideal solution would be to take a commercial flight. The private jet flight and the commercial flight produce relatively the same emissions. However, taking a flight that is already scheduled, cuts emissions by avoiding unnecessary flights.
Electric Cars
In addition to this, celebrities have the money to purchase nice electric cars. Electric cars release significantly fewer emissions than gas-powered cars do! Especially for celebrities who take many trips, electric cars are the way to go.
Lastly, celebrities need to significantly lower their carbon emissions by choosing different forms of transportation. The short private jet flights cause an exuberant amount of carbon emissions and are horrible for the environment. While some private jet flights going longer distances make sense for celebrities to use, most of their short flights are completely unacceptable. These private jet flights pollute the environment and represent a complete disregard for climate change.
Loved this article! Why should we have to worry about our small carbon footprint when these celebrities are polluting the earth on a much larger scale.