A new volcanic eruption has begun in Iceland 🌋, marking the eighth occurrence in the last three years. This event provides an opportunity to address a common question we often receive during eruptions: "Does this cancel out all our efforts to reduce emissions?" or "Is it equivalent to the annual emissions from cars?"

These concerns are valid, especially in a small country like Iceland where a single eruption might seem significant. However, the amount of CO2 released by a typical eruption is comparable to that emitted by a medium-sized city 🏙️.

It's important to remember that CO2 in the atmosphere is a natural component of the Earth's carbon cycle; what nature emits, it also has the capacity to absorb 🌍. In contrast, human-generated emissions occur at a rate not naturally balanced by these processes. According to Climate.gov, human emissions exceed volcanic emissions by more than 60 times each year. In just 200 years, humanity has developed methods to emit 60 times more CO2 annually than all the world's volcanoes.

Volcanic eruptions are natural phenomena that we cannot stop, and it is neither fair nor accurate to use them to undermine our environmental efforts 🌱. With 50-70 volcanoes actively erupting each year, human emissions are equivalent to the output of 3,600 volcanoes.

In summary, no, a single volcanic eruption does not negate our efforts to reduce carbon emissions 🚫🌋.

Nature is fascinating, and below you can see a live stream from the eruption in Iceland.&#x20;