The Change
From the studies carried out it would seem the Earth’s climate has remained reasonably stable from the last ice age into recent centuries. In the 20th century we have experienced an approximate overall increase in temperature of 0.5 Centigrade. The sea levels have risen, glaciers are melting at an accelerated pace and arctic ice is thinner.
Carbon seems to be the
key to the balance of the processes which have kept stability for so long. Carbon dioxide traps radiant energy which would normally have been released into space. This means the Earth’s atmosphere is warmer than it would be with lower levels of carbon dioxide.
The Carbon Balance
Carbon dioxide is used during photosynthesis and carbon is a primary building block of complex
organic molecules within plants and animals. It is, however, photosynthetic plants which hold the power to use radiant energy, actually manufacture these building blocks and act as primary producers. Different plants can effectively convert and store more carbon than others; trees can store more carbon per unit area than grasslands. (Source the Met office). The types of vegetation are classified as plant functional types or PFT. This includes broadleaved trees, needle leaved trees, C3 grasses, C4 grasses and shrubs. Carbon is returned into the system when parts of the plant or the whole plant dies. It is also released during the process of respiration. Micro- organisms break down the carbon compounds in the soil and also release carbon dioxide. Carbon is also continuously cycled between the stores in the oceans, the land, and the atmosphere. So, we have what is termed net ecosystem productivity.
So what have we done to upset the balance?
Well, it didn’t really help that our ancestors cut down millions of trees to make way for crops and the expanding population. Then we started burning vast amounts of fossil fuels to power our transport and industry. So, we removed vast areas of carbon storage and then released huge volumes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Just to makes things a little more interesting we then started destroying the ozone layer which protects us from harmful radiation. So, recent man made carbon dioxide emissions have, according to the monitoring agencies, increased the carbon dioxide content of our atmosphere by about thirty percent.
Ah, I hear you say, or maybe not, this means there’s more carbon dioxide for our lovely grass, so my football pitch or golf course
“Just to make
things a little more interesting we then started to destroy the ozone layer!”
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