Ticked-Off Emissions

Just when we finally figured out what that huge and ominous counter was tracking in New York City’s Union Square (for the record, it’s the national debt, not the number of smoking deaths, as some believed), now comes another reminder of our wasteful ways.

Deutsche Bank last week unveiled its “Carbon Counter,” a 70-foot digital billboard near Madison Square Garden that shows a running total of “long-lived” greenhouse gases (like carbon dioxide and methane) in the atmosphere.

The idea was created by the bank’s climate change investment and research business and is based on measurements developed by MIT scientists on all long-lived greenhouse gases covered under the Kyoto and Montreal Protocols. The hope is that just seeing that huge number clicking upwards will spur the public to action. Non-New York City residents can see the Counter’s tally here, at its "Know Your Number" Web site. Currently, it shows that there are 3.64 trillion metric tons of long-lived greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. And counting.

If that doesn’t scare you into doing something, think about all the counter’s gawking tourists gumming up the sidewalk until the bank decides to take it down.

Photo courtesy of Deutsche Bank.