Carbon Sinks
Between 2000 and 2009, carbon dioxide emissions from cement and burning fuels increased by 30 percent. Although the term makes it seem as though all of the carbon goes to the atmosphere, this is a common mistake. Scientists have discovered natural “carbon sinks”– environments that can re-absorb carbon dioxide. These environments include forests and oceans, and some sinks can hold carbon for thousands of years. About half of all man-made carbon emissions are naturally absorbed and used by the aforementioned sinks. Forests will use the carbon dioxide to grow, using it up after several decades; carbon dioxide will remain in deep oceans for hundreds of thousands of years. This seemingly solves the issue of carbon emissions and climate change. However, climate reports dictate that the warming of the earth lowers the capacity of carbon sinks. The pH of the ocean is lowering as a result of taking in more carbon dioxide (the term is coined “ocean acidification”) and this can be harmful to many species in the oceans, such as fish in coral reefs or sea turtles in the open sea. Plastic and Trash in the Oceans
For centuries, humans have been dumping their trash into the oceans. It seems like a quick fix; in the seemingly endless sea, it appears as if trash will just dissolve. The reality of this situation, though, is far more off-putting. Trash in the oceans, especially plastic, doesn't just go away. Plastic is not biodegradable and takes a very long time to decompose, anywhere from 10 to 1000 years. This makes it safe to say that most of the plastic bottles and bags ever made actually haven't decomposed, and are still here on Earth in some shape or form other than decomposition. Pictured on the right is a massive collection of trash floating off of the coast of Central America. This raises another question: why can't we incinerate the plastic? Incinerating plastic releases harmful dioxins into the air, including carbon dioxide, which becomes harder for carbon sinks to absorb every day. |