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Can someonr explain thr math of how someone is supposed to be able to be even close to net zero carbon footprint? (lemmy.world)

submitted 1 year ago by Kage520@lemmy.world to c/asklemmy@lemmy.world

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I just got a CO2 meter and checked the levels in my house and went down a rabbit hole trying to address the issue. Apparently it would take 249 areca palms to offset the carbon RESPIRATION of one adult.

So okay 249 trees just for me to breathe, not to mention the rest of the bad things we all do.

So how can this math ever balance? 249 trees just to break even seems like an impossible number. Then all the flights I have been on, miles driven, etc.

I feel like that's... Way too many trees. Is it hopeless or am I missing something?

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[-] Skua@kbin.social 6 points 1 year ago

Yes, carbon sequestration is the term for it, but none of them are currently practical to do on a scale that would mitigate the effects of the fossil fuels we burn. Growing trees is an example of this, as they do lock up carbon in the process of growing, but they're kind of a risky prospect since if the tree dies and rots or is caught in a wildfire then it releases the carbon again. Another option is literally just sticking it back underground in mines or oil wells, but of course that takes a lot of energy to do and then whole point of burning fossil fuels is to get energy so this one is currently a bit self-defeating. They're things that might be helpful to do if we succeed in transitioning to clean energy and have an excess of it available

[-] beaubbe@lemmy.world 4 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

If we can get nuclear fusion to work, that would be the kind of things that would then make sense to do. I can only hope that we figure it out as soon as possible.

[-] Skua@kbin.social 1 points 1 year ago

Absolutely. Or even just excess capacity of wind and solar, to be honest. Whatever works, so long as we don't need it to replace fossil fuels and it isn't itself making more CO2 to lock away the CO2

this post was submitted on 20 Aug 2023

125 points (89.8% liked)

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