The Ecological Footprint of COVID-19 mRNA Vaccines: Estimating Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Germany

Peter Kurzweil, Alfred Müller and Steffen Wahler
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Peter Kurzweil: Department MBUT, Technical University of Applied Sciences (OTH), Kaiser-Wilhelm-Ring 23, 92224 Amberg, Germany
Alfred Müller: Analytic Services, Jahnstr. 34c, 80469 München, Germany
Steffen Wahler: St. Bernward GmbH, Friedrich-Kirsten-Str. 40, 22391 Hamburg, Germany

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 14, 1-12

Abstract: 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 2 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 2 equivalents, depending on the cooling technology and the logistic routes to the vaccination sites in Germany.

Keywords: ecological impact analysis; CO 2 footprint; COVID-19 vaccine (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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