So..... One of the big questions of the moment is all about global warming. What can we do to stop it?
But then there are those that say it isn't caused by man. And others who say it doesn't exist at all!
What is the truth in all this? Will we ever know?
I don't intend to be a fountain of knowledge, and I certainly don't want to dismiss any side's point of view. What I want to do is put across what I believe, and the opinion that I have formulated from my own reading and interpretation of scientific evidence.
Global warming almost certainly does exist. The sheer quantity of scientific evidence to support it is overwhelming. Whilst there is debate about the scale of it compared to solar activity and other factors that can contribute to warming it is happening.
But are we causing it? Is it all because of us, humans?
This is where I divert from the popular and socially acceptable point of view. I don't feel that global warming is influenced by human activity.
Yes, whilst we do create CO2, and yes, this is a cause of global warming, the quantity we produce on a global scale isn't that much when compared to other sources of CO2 emissions. Humans contribute 26.4 Giga-tonnes (Gt) out of the total 440Gt emitted by respiration of vegetation and consumption of such vegetation by animals and microbes. This is not even 6%. By reducing our emissions therefore, will have a very small effect on the total CO2 emissions.
This is not to say however, than we shouldn't try - I am simply saying we can't expect it to solve the "crisis" as the media and current governments worldwide have blown it up to be.
As I see it, the major problem towards global warming is in a lack of balance between CO2 production and absorption. I believe we should therefore concentrate our efforts on ways of absorbing CO2 levels, rather than the mere political spin and costly - yet nonetheless wasteless - fad of the moment in reducing our levels of CO2 emission.
Wednesday, 7 May 2008
Global Warming; What should we believe?
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3 comments:
Something I didn't mention in my post was work conducted by Professor Dan Golomb into the limestone stabilisation of CO2 for ocean sequestration. That is, forming globules of CO2, which will sink to the deep ocean for sequestration of CO2.
See Environ. Sci. Technol., 2004, 38, 4445-4450 for more info
Another way to absorb CO2 would be to use CO2 as a fuel.
By reacting CO2 with H2 in a reactor, you cna create large quantities of CH4 or methane or natural gas for non chemists.
This methane could then be used to synthesise petrol through the Gas to Liquid processes, providing a renewable and nearly infinite source of petroleum.
Or - rather than use the methane to synthesis petroleum it can simply be burned as a clean source of fuel to generate electricity. It actually produces the most heat per unit mass than any other hydrocarbon.
These are all areas which need more investment and research, but are sadly being ignored as focus is being spent on reducing emissions.
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