With age comes a lower carbon footprint, as an average American's carbon dioxide emissions start to fall after the age of 65 as they spend less in energy-intensive goods and services.

This is the finding of a new demographic analysis from German research organization Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, which looked at the relationship between age and average per capita carbon dioxide emissions.

The results suggest that societies with a growing share of elderly people will tend to produce lower carbon dioxide emissions, at least in developed countries with consumption patterns similar to those of the United States.

According to the United Nations, the worldwide share of people aged 65 and older will grow from around eight percent currently to around 13 percent by 2030. A good portion of these will be American, with the U.S. Census Bureau putting life expectancy in the U.S. at 78.3 years in 2010, rising to 83.1 years by 2050.

The researchers, led by demographer Emilio Zagheni of the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, calculated a profile based on U.S. data on how many dollars an average resident spent at different ages on nine energy-intensive and carbon dioxide-intensive products and services, including electricity, gasoline and air travel. They also assigned carbon dioxide emission weights to the consumption of these goods.

While the study found that the elderly spend more on average than younger adults, these expenditures tend to be in lower carbon sectors as compared with middle-aged persons who fly and drive cars and use more electricity.

The major expense of the elderly is health care services which generally produce low levels of greenhouse gas. The amount they spend on health care also leaves them with less money to spend on energy-intensive goods.

If new, more carbon-efficient technologies are developed or if more renewable energy sources are added to the mix, the researchers believe that the decreases in emissions along the age structure could be further leveraged to have a positive effect on the climate.

Earlier economic models have shown that a reduction in carbon dioxide through changes in the age structure can only be seen after 2050 when reductions of up to 20 percent could occur. (Katrice R. Jalbuena)

новинки кинематографа
Машинная вышивка, программа для вышивания, Разработка макета в вышивальной программе, Авторский дизайн