Everyone keeps hearing that cars are bad for the environment and that they produce a lot of CO2 emissions. But how do cars relate to marine environments and what are their impacts on the oceans?

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Did you know that...

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• Ocean absorbs almost 30% of carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions from human activities.

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• The amount of fish caught and sold onshore in Connecticut dropped from 3.7 million pounds annually to just over 111,000 pounds in 2019, representing an almost 97 percent decline, according to the Connecticut State Council of Environmental Quality.

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• For about two months in 1999, the Sound warmed to temperatures higher than what lobsters can tolerate. The previous winter was also warmer than usual. 

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• A typical passenger vehicle emits about 4.6 metric tons of carbon dioxide per year

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• More vehicle miles traveled; higher sea level rise.

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• In highly acidified water, corals, mollusks, and many crustacean species are absent, replaced with thick mats of photosynthetic algae.

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• Coral reefs could be greatly diminished once atmospheric carbon dioxide reaches levels expected by the middle of this century. https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/article/ocean-acidification/

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• The ocean is storing an estimated 91 percent of the excess heat energy trapped in the Earth's climate system by excess greenhouse gasses. 

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• Tire wear is a major source of microplastics. 

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• Plastics absorb poisonous organic compounds and then, they’re consumed by marine life. This spreads from organism to organism as they eat one another.

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• Every tire on the planet adds about 2 pounds of rubber into the ocean. https://oceanblueproject.org/how-your-tires-are-harming-marine-life/

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• Image from: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2018.02.016

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Go New Haven Go encourages the use of different types of transportation, especially those that don't involve cars! For more information about the various types of transportation, check out our FAQs page!