[A-List] Oil Addiction: The World in Peril - 6

[Bill Totten <shimogamo@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

by Pierre Chomat (Universal Publishers, 2004)

translated from the French by Pamela Gilbert-Snyder


Part I. Man's Egosystems

Chapter 6. The Earth's New Cloak

Another great danger associated with the West's thirst for hydrocarbons has to
do with the way an ergamine is consumed. Although it dies in labor, which might
be considered a noble end, the ergamine does not simply vanish without a trace.
Combining with oxygen in the air (O2), its carbon atoms (C) produce molecules of
gas (CO2), which escape into the atmosphere. We are all familiar with this gas:
it is what makes champagne corks pop! Colorless, odorless, inert, it could
almost pass unnoticed were it not for the fact that it is alleged to have
committed a serious crime: that of attempting to warm the globe. Nothing less
than that! Scientifically, this gas is known as carbon dioxide. In the "criminal
indictment" presented below, I will refer to it simply as CO2.

For the time being, however, CO2's crimes are only alleged, and before bringing
formal charges against it one should present the evidence in its favor. First,
it is worth noting that CO2 is not necessarily harmful to humans. On the
contrary, it is even one of the primary natural gases that regulate the Earth's
temperature from the sky by acting as a "screen" to hold in some of the Sun's
rays, which would otherwise bounce off the globe and return to outer space. The
other natural gases in the atmosphere that, along with CO2, significantly
contribute to global temperature regulation are: water vapor (H2O), methane (CH4),
nitrous oxide (N2O), and ozone (O3). Every molecule of these natural gases found
in the air acts as a microscopic heat screen. The more screening molecules there
are the more effective they become at holding in heat. This process is called
the "greenhouse effect" because these gases act like the glass of a greenhouse,
trapping heat from the sun to warm the air inside. Without it, most of the heat
we need to survive would be lost in space and the Earth's average temperature
would hover at around zero degrees Fahrenheit (-8 degrees Celsius). Currently,
our average temperature is 59 degrees Fahrenheit (+15 degrees Celsius). {7}

These greenhouse gases, about which we hear such nasty things, are in reality
the Earth's natural thermostats. As heat screens, they sustain life as we know
it on a global scale. We owe our very existence to them.

So if we owe our lives to these gases, what exactly do we have against them?
Obviously, there would be no problem if they had simply continued the important
task that they have been performing for millions of years, but human activity
has increased their presence in the atmosphere to the point of making their
heat-trapping effect all too powerful. Evidence shows that our planet is no
longer able to release enough of the heat it receives from the Sun. In short,
our natural thermostat is out-of-whack!

The facts paint a bleak picture for human beings. Millions of tons of extra CO2
are emitted every day through the combustion of the ergamines that sustain our
Western way of life. Tons of methane are also released by industrial activities
such as coal extraction and processing, factory farming, industrial feedlots, as
well as by the decomposition of garbage in landfills. In addition, large
quantities of all sorts of nitrogen oxides are produced inside hot engines and
discharged into the air along with the exhaust fumes.

In short, since the beginning of the industrial era, when we began pushing our
consumption of ergamines to extremes, oil-addicted human beings have been
forcing our natural thermostat higher and higher. And the Earth is warming!

Not all greenhouse gases have the same heat-trapping potential. In equal
concentrations, methane and nitrous oxide are far more effective at trapping
heat than CO2. {a} In addition to the natural gases, many chemicals are released
into the air by industry. Most of these chemicals did not exist before, or only
in trace amounts. Their global warming potentials are sometimes tens of
thousands of times greater than that of CO. {b} However, of all the gases in the
atmosphere except water vapor, CO2 has the greatest overall heat trapping power
simply because it is present in such high concentrations.

And its concentration in the atmosphere is increasing rapidly - by 31% since the
beginning of the industrial era, when it was 280 parts per million by volume. In
1999, its level reached 367 parts per million by volume, the highest in 420,000
years, very likely the highest in twenty million years. {c} In just a little
over one century, human beings have managed to destroy the balance that had been
maintained on Earth for tens of millions of years. Earth is no longer the great
celestial body whose form and dimensions our ancient sapiens ancestors could not
even begin to contemplate - if they thought of it in those terms at all. It is
now a finite world held tightly in the grip of the oil addicts. And it is time
we acknowledge it.

But even more worrisome than CO2's high concentration in the atmosphere is the
length of time its molecules remain there: an average of 100 years. {d} In other
words, as long as we continue to burn ergamines, CO2 will continue to accumulate
around the Earth. We are installing an "electric blanket" around our globe, one
that will remain there for a very long time. Even if we stopped producing CO2
today, the Earth would continue to warm for a century. This is beyond worrisome:
it is positively alarming!

The amount of CO2 each of us is responsible for emitting increases with the
amount of ergamines we consume. For example, an SUV releases 200 pounds of CO2
per hour; a lawn mower, three pounds; a leaf-blower, one pound. A plane flying
from San Francisco to Europe emits 2500 pounds of CO2 in the atmosphere per
passenger. Each American emits an average of 100 pounds of carbon dioxide per
day, with Texans having the highest rate at 200 pounds. Canadians emit 75 pounds
each, Russians and Germans 55 pounds each, Japanese and Poles 45 pounds, South
Africans 35 pounds, the French 27 pounds, Mexicans eighteen pounds, and the
Chinese twelve pounds each. {9}

To complicate matters further, the topic has become highly politicized. We are
witnessing a confrontation between groups who are arguing against each other
without ever connecting to find a solution.

On one side are the great majority of scientists, who are convinced that
greenhouse gas emissions will generate global warming on a scale that will
endanger life. But the results of their research never make it out of
intellectual circles, which have no decision-making power in society. Thus,
scientists are unable to intervene to bring the situation in check. This is
particularly true in the United States and in rapidly developing countries such
as China and Malaysia. It should also be noted that their research is often
ambiguous because the greenhouse effect is so complex and involves counter
effects that are difficult to quantify. On the other side is industry, which
never wavers from its main objective: to produce more. Thus, for financial
reasons, industry continues to consume more energy every day, gradually
producing more and more greenhouse gases. It comes as a surprise to no one that
the oil industry is calling the tune.

Between these two groups of very unequal power and financial resources are the
politicians whom we place on the public stage - or who manipulate the voters to
place themselves there. Their goals are also clear: to hold their positions of
power for as long as possible. So far, their greatest staying power has come
from their connections with industry. And, the truth is, we would not have it
any other way. For us, industry means jobs. Industry is our revolution, our
paycheck, our pride and joy. It is our way of life. Slowing industry down would
mean going back to the horse and buggy.

These are the stakes with regard to CO2. In the West, most leaders, whether in
industry or politics, avoid the issue and simply resign themselves to lying
about it. In fact, they are "anesthetizing" us! Our society's highest leaders
avoid responsibility by saying they are waiting for scientists to provide
irrefutable proof that global warming, which has been proven irrefutably, is
indeed caused by increased greenhouse gas emissions. Since absolute proof does
not exist in science - it is not even possible to prove that the Earth is round
beyond dispute - politicians, who continue to ignore the problem, rest safe in
the assurance that they will never have to face the jury. They are like
physicians refusing to treat a patient until they receive ironclad proof that he
has contracted a terminal illness. Only his death would allow them to act in
good conscience! It is regrettable that certain governments have adopted such an
irresponsible attitude in this regard. And it is no coincidence that these
governments are the ones that benefit most from ergamines.

Meanwhile, the Earth continues to warm. We now know that the beautiful snowcaps
of Mount Fuji and Kilimanjaro are not eternal; they are melting, almost before
our very eyes. The polar icecaps are also shrinking. Polar bears will soon have
to find a new habitat.

If it wants to maintain its standing, the scientific community can no longer
limit itself to just talk. Research alone will not change the societal trends of
oil addicts. Men and women of science will not change the way we live by staying
in the laboratory. The men and women of money and politics have much more power
than they. American universities are well aware of this. Many depend on state
and industry subsidies to conduct their research. By accepting these subsidies,
some have difficulty maintaining their independence. They compromise themselves
by publishing reports that will not jeopardize the interests of their clients.

The United States government subsidizes many global warming studies and research
projects aimed at identifying new sources of energy to replace traditional forms.
By launching these studies, it can say it is trying to save the environment. In
reality, however, most of these studies are nothing more than smokescreens that
allow it to avoid the deeper issues while continuing its policy of unlimited
energy consumption. Three major American corporations whose businesses relate to
hydrocarbon production, ExxonMobil, General Electric, and Schlumberger Limited,
along with Europe's largest privately-owned energy services provider, EON,
recently commissioned a study. The aim of this project is to identify and
develop new energy systems with low greenhouse gas emissions. It will cost these
companies more than two hundred million dollars and take about ten years to
complete. As will be seen later in the chapter "Global Black Gold Reserves", by
the time the results of this study are made public, global oil production will
have peaked, and the world will already have been forced to reduce its
consumption. The study may still help these companies reorient their business
strategies to reduce pollution, but it will not contribute to curbing the
overall increase of global warming.

We are going around in circles, blinded by political whitewash!


Notes

{7} J L Bobin, H Nifenecker, C Stephan, L'energie dans le monde: bilan et
perspectives, (Les Ulis, France: Societe Francaise de Physique, EDP Sciences,
2001), 26.

{a} US Environmental Pollution Agency, "Greenhouse Gas and Global Warming
Potential Values", Table 2, Report of April 2002.

"Global Warming Potentials (GWPs) are intended as a quantified measure of the
globally averaged relative radiative-forcing impacts of a particular greenhouse
gas. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has recently updated the
specific GWPs for most greenhouse gases. Taking carbon dioxide (CO2) as a
reference, over a 100-year time horizon, the relative GPMs are: 1 for CO2, 21
for methane and 310 for nitrous oxide (N2O)."


{b} EPA Report, op cit, Table 2. Over a 100-year time horizon, the relative GPMs
are: 11,700 for hydrofluorocarbon (HFC-23) and 24,000 for sulfur hexafluoride
(SF6)

{c} EPA Report, op cit, pages 5-6.

{d} EPA Report, op cit, Table 2. The atmospheric lifetime of a molecule of CO2
is between fifty and 200 years. It is about twelve years for methane. The
lifetime of chemical compounds released by industry can be extremely long, for
example 50,000 years for CF4.

{9} Electronic document dated December 2002 at
http://www.epcc.ptef.osaka.jp/apec/eng/earth/globd_wamiing/co2.htm

Bill Totten     http://billtotten.blogspot.com/