Blurs

The Solution to Pollution Is Not Dilution: Why Cutting Emissions Matters More Than Offsetting Them For decades, environmental scientists have repeated a simple phrase: "The solution to pollution is not dilution." Originally used to challenge the idea that pollutants could simply be dispersed into rivers, oceans or the atmosphere until they became harmless, the phrase remains as relevant today as ever.  Whether we're talking about plastics in the ocean, nitrates in rivers, toxic chemicals in soils or carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, spreading pollution more thinly does not remove it.  It simply makes it harder to see—and often harder to reverse. As governments and businesses around the world pursue net zero targets, this principle deserves renewed attention.  Net zero has become a central pillar of climate policy, but its success depends entirely on how it is achieved. If it becomes an excuse to offset rather than eliminate emissions, then it risks repeating the very mist...