What is CO2 and How to Reduce It
For this project we had to write about CO2 in our atmosphere and how we contribute to it. we only had a weekend to work on it so some of the requirements were cut.
Every year the average American produces 20 metric tons or 22 tons of CO2. What is CO2? What does it do? Where does it come from? And how can I cut down on it? CO2 or carbon dioxide is a gas in our atmosphere that is a great insulator and is responsible for global warming. Carbon dioxide is a byproduct of burning fossil fuels, some industrial processes, and ocean atmosphere exchange
But how does carbon dioxide come from nature? Carbon dioxide is naturally made from forest fires and breathing. There are natural ways that carbon is filtered out of the atmosphere such as photosynthesis. Photosynthesis occurs in plants and is the process of taking water, carbon dioxide, and using sunlight to create sugar for plant food and the release of O2. Carbon is also created when trees die, decompose, become covered by dirt and rock, and over millions of years the tree will become a fossil fuel. Then the fuel will become dug up and burned releasing carbon dioxide back into the atmosphere restarting the cycle. This is the Carbon Cycle.
My family produces 10.9 metric tons of carbon dioxide. If everyone polluted like my family, we would need 4.4 earths which could support 7 billion people who produce CO2. The average Earths for an Americans is 5 and the average German is 3.2 number of earths. My family’s overshoot day is March 24th. An overshoot day is a score for how much energy you produce in a year. The more time until the overshoot day the better. The overshoot day for the world is August 1.
I decided to figure out how to cover my “carbon debt.” What I first did was slow down on how much electricity I used by turning of the lights when I don't need them and cutting down how much I use computers. Another way that i could give back is by planting 180 trees a year for as long as I pollute the way I do, but I don't have that kind of time. There are some other ways you could cut down on carbon dioxide. You could set up solar panels and plant a garden.
As for long term goals or ones that require a lot of people to work together, I think we should invest into clean energy such as nuclear, geothermal, solar and wind. As we switch to cleaner energy we won't have to cut down on energy usage.
Every year the average American produces 20 metric tons or 22 tons of CO2. What is CO2? What does it do? Where does it come from? And how can I cut down on it? CO2 or carbon dioxide is a gas in our atmosphere that is a great insulator and is responsible for global warming. Carbon dioxide is a byproduct of burning fossil fuels, some industrial processes, and ocean atmosphere exchange
But how does carbon dioxide come from nature? Carbon dioxide is naturally made from forest fires and breathing. There are natural ways that carbon is filtered out of the atmosphere such as photosynthesis. Photosynthesis occurs in plants and is the process of taking water, carbon dioxide, and using sunlight to create sugar for plant food and the release of O2. Carbon is also created when trees die, decompose, become covered by dirt and rock, and over millions of years the tree will become a fossil fuel. Then the fuel will become dug up and burned releasing carbon dioxide back into the atmosphere restarting the cycle. This is the Carbon Cycle.
My family produces 10.9 metric tons of carbon dioxide. If everyone polluted like my family, we would need 4.4 earths which could support 7 billion people who produce CO2. The average Earths for an Americans is 5 and the average German is 3.2 number of earths. My family’s overshoot day is March 24th. An overshoot day is a score for how much energy you produce in a year. The more time until the overshoot day the better. The overshoot day for the world is August 1.
I decided to figure out how to cover my “carbon debt.” What I first did was slow down on how much electricity I used by turning of the lights when I don't need them and cutting down how much I use computers. Another way that i could give back is by planting 180 trees a year for as long as I pollute the way I do, but I don't have that kind of time. There are some other ways you could cut down on carbon dioxide. You could set up solar panels and plant a garden.
As for long term goals or ones that require a lot of people to work together, I think we should invest into clean energy such as nuclear, geothermal, solar and wind. As we switch to cleaner energy we won't have to cut down on energy usage.
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