The Mismatch between Anthropogenic CO<sub>2</sub> Emissions and Their Consequences for Human Zinc and Protein Sufficiency Highlights Important Environmental Justice Issues

oleh: Elizabeth R. H. Moore, Matthew R. Smith, Debbie Humphries, Robert Dubrow, Samuel S. Myers

Format: Article
Diterbitkan: MDPI AG 2020-02-01

Deskripsi

The impacts of climate change are not equally distributed globally. We examined the global distribution of CO<sub>2</sub> emissions and the ensuing distribution of increases in the risk of zinc and protein deficiency resulting from elevated atmospheric CO<sub>2</sub> concentrations. We estimated cumulative per capita (2011&#8722;2050) CO<sub>2</sub> emissions for 146 countries using existing measurement data and by apportioning regional emissions projections. We tested the relationship between cumulative per capita CO<sub>2</sub> emissions and the risk of additional zinc and protein deficiency at the population-level and country-level. At the population-level (i.e., population-weighted), we observed a significant inverse association between CO<sub>2</sub> emissions and the percentage of the population placed at additional risk of zinc (<i>p</i>-value: &lt;0.001) and protein (<i>p</i>-value: &lt;0.01) deficiencies. Country-level (i.e., unweighted) analyses produced significant but less strong associations. Populations with lower per capita CO<sub>2</sub> emissions between 2011 and 2050 will experience a disproportionately high nutritional burden, highlighting socioeconomic, geospatial, and intergenerational injustices.