Jeff Bezos' superyacht 'Koru' produces 7,000 tons of carbon emissions every year: Study

Jeff Bezos has come under fire for claiming to be a supporter of climate change while owning a superyacht that produces thousands of tons of carbon emissions each year, according to a recent analysis by researchers at Indiana University.

The New York Post reported that Bezos' giant 417-foot yacht named "Koru" produces, at minimum, 7,154 tons of greenhouse gases on a yearly basis. This amounts to about 447 times the entire annual carbon footprint left behind by the average American.

Bezos' actions and what he claims to support do not seem to align, with Forbes reporting earlier this year that the Bezos Earth Fund had put $34.5 million toward better reporting on climate and sustainable food.

At the time, the donation had made the Earth Fund's total amount given to the cause to be $1.66 billion. In 2020, Bezos pledged $10 billion over the next ten years to fight the apparent impact of climate change. Since that time, Bezos has only accomplished 17% of the initial goal.

Indiana anthropology PhD candidate Beatriz Barros, who researched Bezos' yacht's emissions with anthropologist Richard Wilk, said that billionaires appear to be heavily invested in issues such as climate change and carbon emission, but their actions do not align with what they say.

“[B]ecause they are so rich and so powerful, they feel like they are entitled [to travel in carbon-producing superyachts], whereas you and I should drive less, should eat less meat,” she said.

Though experts in the boating industry have praised Koru's "green" capabilities, Barros noted that the yacht still produces a massive amount of greenhouse gases just by heating and cooling. She went on to mention that greenhouse gases are also released when the ship powers its luxury amenities, such as its theater, pool, and sauna.

“I don’t see how, how in any way this can be considered to be environmentally friendly,” Barros said, according to the Guardian.

Dario Kenner, author of "Carbon Inequality: The Role of the Richest in Climate Change," has noted that Bezos has the ability to insulate himself from the negative impact of environmental issues.

“There is an emotional and physical disconnect from the rich and climate change,” Kenner said.

“The poorest people live closest to toxic air facilities, refineries, places where pollution is dumped,” he continued.

“If you’re rich, you’re rarely in contact with environmental disaster zones — you’re more insulated from extreme weather, from air pollution.”

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