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Originally Posted by Sweetpea
The earth was much warmer by the time coal and petrol and all those fossil fuels were created. So, if we release all that CO2 again, we'll get as warm as it was then.
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And just why was the Earth so much warmer back in the Carboniferous era and the like when all the the fossil fuel was in the process of creation?
Assuming that releasing all the previously stored CO2 will put it back there again is questionable. Remember, we are on the tail end of coming
out of a period of glaciation.
(I am all in favor of "green" in principle. What is
not clear to me is how much climate change is caused by human activity, and how much is due to truly long term cycles we have no control over. It may well continue to get warmer for reasons we aren't responsible for and can't do anything about. "We didn't cause it, but we're stuck with it, and how do we best deal with it?" may be the real question.)
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By only releasing the CO2 that was captured last year, it will even out. We will never go to a zero emission life-style. Even burning wood will release CO2.
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And the question is made more complex by the fact that several different kinds or energy consumption are involved.
Things like wind farms and tidal generators are fine for producing electricity, but electricity is only one energy form in use. In the US, electrical power was about 1/4 of the total energy budget the last I knew. Industrial, commercial and residential heating and cooling and transportation accounted for the majority. Burning coal, oil, and natural gas accounted for the majority of that.
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Dennis