Kurzweil Peter, Müller Alfred, Wahler Steffen
Department MBUT, Technical University of Applied Sciences (OTH), Kaiser-Wilhelm-Ring 23, 92224 Amberg, Germany.
Analytic Services, Jahnstr. 34c, 80469 München, Germany.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Jul 12;18(14):7425. doi: 10.3390/ijerph18147425.
Compared to the medical, economic and social implications of COVID-19 vaccinations, little attention has been paid to the ecological balance to date. This study is an attempt to estimate the environmental impact of two mRNA vaccines in terms of CO equivalents with respect to their different freezing strategies and supply chain organization. Although it is impossible to accurately calculate the actual environmental impact of the new biochemical synthesis technology, it becomes apparent that transport accounts for up to 99% of the total carbon footprint. The emissions for air freight, road transportation and last-mile delivery are nearly as 19 times the emissions generated from ultra-deep freeze technologies, the production of dry ice, glass and medical polymers for packaging. The carbon footprint of a single mRNA vaccine dose injected into a patient is about 0.01 to 0.2 kg CO equivalents, depending on the cooling technology and the logistic routes to the vaccination sites in Germany.
与新冠疫苗接种的医学、经济和社会影响相比，迄今为止，人们对生态平衡的关注较少。本研究试图根据两种信使核糖核酸（mRNA）疫苗不同的冷冻策略和供应链组织，估算其以二氧化碳当量计的环境影响。尽管不可能精确计算这种新生化合成技术的实际环境影响，但显而易见的是，运输占碳足迹总量的比例高达99%。航空货运、公路运输和最后一英里配送产生的排放量几乎是超低温冷冻技术、用于包装的干冰、玻璃和医用聚合物生产所产生排放量的19倍。根据冷却技术以及运往德国疫苗接种点的物流路线，注入患者体内的一剂mRNA疫苗的碳足迹约为0.01至0.2千克二氧化碳当量。
