Agriculture vs. Fossil Fuels: Reassessing the Main Culprit of Climate Change

In a groundbreaking assessment of contributors to global warming, Australian climate scientist Gerard Wedderburn-Bisshop challenges the traditional emphasis on fossil fuels as the primary driver of climate change. Published in Environmental Research Letters, his paper argues that agriculture, particularly livestock farming, shoulders most of the blame for historical global warming.

Wedderburn-Bisshop's analysis suggests agriculture was responsible for 60% of global warming from 1750 to 2020, with meat and dairy farming contributing a staggering 86% of this impact. In contrast, fossil fuels accounted for just 19% during this period.

The scientist, who co-founded the World Preservation Foundation, clarifies that his findings are not intended to lessen the focus on fossil fuels. He highlights the urgency in transitioning from coal, oil, and natural gas. Yet, he emphasizes the consequential role of land use, underscoring deforestation in agricultural development as a pivotal factor.

Wedderburn-Bisshop's research draws upon alternative greenhouse gas accounting methods, advocating for gross rather than net emission reporting for land use. Such an approach, he claims, would reveal that deforestation emissions exceed those from fossil fuels. He also suggests using effective radiative forcing over the global warming potential (GWP) system to yield more precise agricultural climate impact measurements.

Critically, the paper champions reforestation as an effective and cost-efficient strategy for natural climate mitigation. By illuminating the direct impacts of deforestation, Wedderburn-Bisshop hopes his findings will catalyze meaningful policy reform.