"The world's richest man has made public statements that deny basic science about the role of agriculture in heating the planet, say experts."
"Elon Musk, the wealthy owner of Twitter, has falsely claimed that farming has no major effect on the climate — prompting corrections from scientists and raising fears about misinformation on the influential social media platform.
In a tweet in late June, Musk said "what happens on Earth's surface (eg farming) has no meaningful impact on climate change." He continued that the risk of climate change came overwhelmingly from moving carbon deep underground into the atmosphere. "Over time, if we keep doing this, the chemical makeup of our atmosphere will change enough to induce meaningful climate change."
Scientists quickly pointed out that he is wrong on two counts. First, greenhouse gas pollution from agriculture, forestry and other land use made up 13-21% of global emissions between 2010 and 2019. Second, humans have heated the planet 1.2 degrees Celsius (2.2 Fahrenheit), which has already made extreme weather events from coastal floods to heat waves stronger and more likely."
Ajit Niranjan reports for DW July 3, 2023.
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