other ghg on the rise, more deadly

Carbon dioxide may be the least of our worries when it comes to greenhouse gases.  While it makes up over 70% of the GHG’s, it is the least harmful offender. Many studies are showing that more harmful gases are on the rise in the atmosphere, according to a report from Discover Magazine.

One such gas is Nitrogen Triflouride (NF3).  This is released in the production of microchips and flat screen televisions.  While it makes up a small percentage, by comparison, it is much more dangerous.  

This particular gas is increasingly being released by 11% each year.  It is 17,000 more times effective at trapping heat in the atmosphere and remains for 550 years.  In contrast, carbon dioxide has a half life of 20 years.

The other gas that is on the rise is methane.  This gas is released from landfills, melting glaciers and permafrost, and livestock flatulence.  More can be found about that by going to this article.

The point to reporting this is to understand and inform the public of new developments in climate science.

forests are dying

 

The death rate of the most stable and resilient forests in western North America has doubled during the past few decades as the climate has warmed, according to The Daily Climate.

The study focused its research on Western states and was comprised of data from 11 scientists.  The conclusion: Western forests are becoming more susceptible to wildfire, disease and invaders such as bark beetles. Average tree size is shrinking; creatures dependent on large, old-growth trees will increasingly find themselves out of a home. 

And as conditions get worse, the trees ability to trap CO2 will get less and less, making them carbon sources instead of carbon sinks.

The study started in 1955 and track growth rates and mortality until the present.  The data showed that while death rates are increasing, birth rates are decreasing.  It also concluded that rising temperatures are the sole cause.

Unfortunately, this becomes a double edged sword: as more CO2 (and other greenhouse gases) are put into the air, the temperatures rise.  As the temperature rises, more trees are susceptible to death making them unlikely to absorb more CO2.  As they stop absorbing CO2, more is released into the air and the cycle starts all over again.

rock star

 

For a while now, a rock that most people know from jewlery, has been slowly getting attention as a possible savior in our climate change battle.  However, new data has brought it to the forefront, as reported in Environmental Science and Technology.

Geologists have known for a while that peridotite reacts with carbon dioxide (CO2) to form solid carbonates, like limestone.  It is the most common, and abundant, rock in the Earth’s mantle. However, harnessing that power to combat climate change has been elusive.  Until now.

Geologist Muriel Andreani of Université Montpellier 2 and his team have shown that if you can inject CO2 into the peridotite, the transformation can occur, and rather quickly.  In fact, carbonate formation occurred after only eight hours.  The working principle is that if factories can trap CO2, it can be injected into boreholes, and creating the carbonate rock.

They have found that there are certain conditions that allow this to happen more than others.  Under poor conditions, the carbonate formed closes up the transfer pores.  But, under the right conditions, a slow and steady stream can be injected into the rock.  In fact, as much as 4 billion tons of CO₂ could be permanently stored in peridotite formations that cover half of the country of Oman, located on the Arabian Peninsula, and that occur in other scattered locations worldwide, according to recent estimates by Columbia University.

Before we all get too excited, however, much more research needs to be done to see how this reaction would work on a much larger scale.  This will be very interesting to follow.

saturation level

Scientists have issued a new warning about climate change after discovering a sudden and dramatic collapse in the amount of carbon emissions absorbed by the Sea of Japan, according to The Guardian UK.

Currently, the world’s oceans absorb 11 billion tons of carbon dioxide.  (It should be noted that is only one quarter of what is emitted.)  Many of limits on emissions are set based on what is expected of the ocean absorption.  If the oceans have reached a saturation limit we may need to restrict the allowable emissions even more.  

The scientists have discovered that the warmer atmospheric temperatures have affected a process called ‘ventilation’.  This is the way seawater flows and mixes and drags absorbed CO2 from surface waters to the depths.

They compared the dissolved CO2 in the seawater with similar samples collected in 1992 and 1999. The results showed the amount of CO2 absorbed during 1999 to 2007 was half the level recorded from 1992 to 1999.

Crucially, the study revealed that ocean mixing, a process required to deposit carbon in deep water, where it is more likely to stay, appears to have significantly weakened.

And while many believe that the oceans are not going to stop absorbing CO2, even reducing the uptake a small amount, will have its affects across the globe.  It becomes a vicious circle.  The more CO2 in the atmosphere the warmer it gets, the warmer is gets the harder it is for oceans to absorb CO2, the less the oceans absorb CO2 the more CO2 in the atmosphere, starting the circle over again.

not doing their job.

Trees and plants have often been dubbed the lungs of the planet, although, in reality they are the kidneys. Making up 7% of the world, in simplistic terms, they have the ability to absorb CO2 and turn it into oxygen. In fact, without them, it would have more than likely for humans to have even evolved, let alone what we are facing now, survival, since we need oxygen to live.

In a little reported, but very important news piece, “scientists have determined that Canada’s 1.2 million square miles of forests have become so stressed from damage caused by global warming, insect infestations and persistent fires that they have crossed an ominous line and now pump out more carbon dioxide than they take in.”

The higher planet temperature have hurt the forest in two ways. First, because it is so much warmer, the normally wet trees are drying out. Additionally, with such little rain fall, they are not achieving normal saturation levels. With the trees being so dry, they are either dying or are susceptible to fire, which when burned releases much more carbon dioxide into the air.

Second, the cold seasons typically allow for many of the insect infestations to end, as the various bugs cannot survive the cold. This gives the tree time to heal prior to another infestation, or becoming strong enough to ward off future illnesses. However, especially in Canada, the temperature is not dropping low enough to kill off the various insects. These often kill the tree leaving mass amounts of natural deforestation.

The affect of this is unquantifiable. We have long depended upon trees to suck in vast quantities of carbon dioxide, naturally cleansing the world of some of the harmful heat-trapping gas. With the increasing amount of greenhouse gases released into the air, but with less effectiveness in cleaning the air, we could be in worse conditions sooner rather than later.

The article was first published via The Environmental News Network

satellite

This is very interesting. In a first of its kind, Japan is going to send a satellite up that will test the “breathing” of Earth.

In a group effort between Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and Environment Ministry and the National Institute for Environmental Studies, the satellite will monitor the emissions of carbon dioxide and methane. These are the two main greenhouse gases that are regulated by the Kyoto Protocol.

Currently, greenhouse gases are monitored using the 283 various observation points across the world. However, the ocean is not monitored, nor a handful of places on land where there are no observation points, such as regions in Africa, the Middle East and South America.

Ibuki (the satellite) will monitor 56,000 locations on Earth from an altitude of 666 kilometers.

It will orbit the Earth in about 100 minutes and return to the same position in three days. During that time, Ibuki will observe sunlight reflected on the Earth’s surface.
Carbon dioxide and methane in the atmosphere absorb infrared rays of specific wavelengths.

The denser the gases, the more light they absorb. Therefore, the density of the gases can be calculated from the measured strength of the light of those wavelengths.

Since there is some disagreement as to how to evaluate the current data that is received, this should help in determining the true values of greenhouse gases. This will help when world leaders meet to draft the next version of regulations that need to be met under an international policy.

The article was published out of Japan, via Asahi.com, HERE.