Iceland's Volcanoes: More Pollution Than Humans?

There have been claims that a volcanic eruption in Iceland released more CO2 than mankind has ever done. However, according to researchers and Icelandic government officials, the eruption was too small and brief to have released a large amount of CO2. In fact, human CO2 emissions dwarf even the combined volcanic emissions from all of Earth's volcanoes.

Iceland's volcanoes do not emit more CO2 than humanity

The Reykjanes volcano in Iceland has never erupted with enough power to emit carbon at the same rate as humanity's emissions. Even the combined volcanic emissions from all of Earth's volcanoes do not match human CO2 emissions, according to researchers and Icelandic government officials.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) states that "human activities emit 60 or more times the amount of carbon dioxide released by volcanoes each year". While "large, violent eruptions" can emit carbon dioxide at high enough rates to match humanity's emissions, these types of eruptions are "too rare and fleeting to rival humanity's annual emissions".

The argument that human-caused carbon emissions are insignificant compared to greenhouse gases generated by volcanoes has been circulating for years. However, the science does not support this claim.

The Reykjanes volcano in Iceland has never erupted with enough power to emit carbon at the same rate as humanity's emissions

The claim that a volcanic eruption in Iceland emitted more CO2 than humanity is false. This claim was made in a viral Facebook post in December 2023, but according to researchers and Icelandic government officials, the eruption was too small and brief to have released a large amount of CO2. In reality, human CO2 emissions dwarf even the combined volcanic emissions from all of Earth's volcanoes.

The argument that human-caused carbon emissions are merely a drop in the bucket compared to greenhouse gases generated by volcanoes has been circulating for years. However, the science does not support this claim. According to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the world's volcanoes generate about 200 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) annually, while automotive and industrial activities cause about 24 billion tons of CO2 emissions every year worldwide.

Human activities emit 60 or more times the amount of carbon dioxide released by volcanoes each year

It is a common misconception that volcanoes emit more carbon dioxide than human activity. While it may sound plausible, the science does not back this up. According to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the world's volcanoes, both on land and undersea, generate about 200 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) annually. In contrast, automotive and industrial activities cause some 24 billion tons of CO2 emissions every year worldwide.

The eruption in Iceland was too small and brief to have released a large amount of CO2, according to researchers and Icelandic government officials. In fact, even the combined volcanic emissions from all of Earth's volcanoes are dwarfed by human CO2 emissions.

Despite this, the idea that a single large volcanic eruption launches more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere than the amount generated by all of humanity over history continues to circulate.

The eruption in Iceland was too small and brief to have released a large amount of CO2

The Reykjanes volcano in Iceland has never erupted with enough power to emit carbon at the same rate as humanity's emissions. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), human activities emit 60 or more times the amount of carbon dioxide released by volcanoes each year. While "large, violent eruptions" can emit carbon dioxide at high enough rates to match humanity's emissions, these types of eruptions are "too rare and fleeting to rival humanity's annual emissions".

The science does not back up the claim that human-caused carbon emissions are a drop in the bucket compared to greenhouse gases generated by volcanoes

According to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the world's volcanoes, both on land and undersea, generate about 200 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) annually. In contrast, our automotive and industrial activities cause some 24 billion tons of CO2 emissions every year worldwide. This means that human activities emit 60 or more times the amount of carbon dioxide released by volcanoes each year, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

While it is true that "large, violent eruptions" can emit carbon dioxide at high enough rates to match humanity's emissions, these types of eruptions are "too rare and fleeting to rival humanity's annual emissions," according to NOAA. The eruption in Iceland was too small and brief to have released a large amount of CO2, according to researchers and Icelandic government officials.

In fact, all of the volcanoes combined do not emit as much carbon dioxide as humans do. This means that even if a single volcanic eruption could match human emissions for a short period, the cumulative effect of human activity far surpasses that of volcanoes.

Therefore, it is clear that the science does not support the claim that human-caused carbon emissions are insignificant compared to greenhouse gases generated by volcanoes.

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