161 / What's the story with carbon dioxide & climate change?
On Insight climatologist professor Stephen Schneider cleared up a debilitating misundertsanding: Yes, humans create only 3% of carbon dioxide emissions; well, so what's the problem?
If carbon dioxide is contributing to climate change, why would we concentrate on the human contribution as being such a problem, when it is so small? This is one of the major arguments of climate change sceptics. I hadn't been sure of the answer to the problem and Schneider gave a satisfying explanation.
If nature provides 97% of CO2 and humans 3% there is a great difference in the way the CO2 produced by the two different methods is dealt with. Nature produces CO2 and absorbs it. This is crucial: Of all CO2 produced by natural processes, 100% is absorbed by natural processes. The net balance is 0% CO2.
The problem with human production of CO2 is that it is cumulative, i.e. it is not absorbed by nature. This again is crucial. The 3% of CO2 produced by humans this year is still around next year and is being added to. Hence global warming. Phew, thanks prof. Schneider.
Watch the Insight program.