Exploring the CO2 Issue and Its Consequences

What exactly is the issue with carbon emissions?

Exploring the CO2 Issue and Its Consequences

When we refer to carbon emissions, we are actually dealing with all greenhouse gases ("GHGs"). GHGs can therefore be grouped under the term CO2e, which includes carbon dioxide (CO2) and other GHGs translated into carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2e) for simplification and comparison purposes.

Due to the amount of CO2e emitted and already present in the atmosphere, the resulting global warming is the greatest enemy facing humanity today. CO2 occurs naturally on Earth, with nature combining its release into the atmosphere and its uptake from the atmosphere (e.g., through photosynthesis) to maintain a natural balance in the biosphere. However, humans have disrupted this balance by clearing forests and releasing large amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, making CO2 a contributor to global warming and climate change.

Amount of CO2 produced, existing and upcoming

According to Nasa (2019), "The concentration of carbon dioxide in Earth’s atmosphere is currently at nearly 412 parts per million (ppm) and rising. This represents a 47% increase since the beginning of the Industrial Age, when the concentration was near 280 ppm, and an 11% increase since 2000, when it was near 370 ppm". Based on a business-as-usual trend, global CO2 emissions are forecast to increase to some 43.08 billion metric tons in 2050, in comparison to 35.3 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide in 2018 (EIA, 2019).

By far the most significant CO2 emissions result from the oxidation of carbon during the combustion of fossil fuels. These emissions occur in power plants, oil refineries, and large industrial facilities (IPCC, 2005). The challenge is that a majority of manufacturing activities around the world still rely on fossil fuels, either as a source of energy or as a raw material (for plastics, for example), making them the well-established solution of choice for manufacturers.

The consequences

Needless to say, anthropogenic CO2 (meaning the CO2 emissions generated through human activities) has catastrophic consequences on the environment, on people and, which could come as a surprise to some, on the economy served by those same activities.

Environmental consequences

In a previous blog post, we described how CO2 contributes to global warming. According to the German Federal Environment Agency, in Germany alone, one third of the species are endangered by global warming. The risks from climate change are evident in a variety of ways: Some plants begin to bloom before bees can pollinate them. Some animals have their offspring earlier in the year, who then do not have enough food to eat. Invasive species spread more when it's warm. Wetlands (which are also important carbon sinks according to Duck unlimited Canada) and streams dry out, and water temperatures in rivers rise, disrupting ecosystems. Due to earlier leaf emergence, trees and plants are more vulnerable to late frost damage. Bark beetles, drought and storms damage forests. Global warming also affects soils: Due to periods of drought in the summer, groundwater regeneration is shifted to the fall and winter, preventing nutrients from being used by plants. Heavy rainfall does not seep into the soil, but instead runs off superficially. This means that the soil is not sufficiently aerated and its fertility suffers therefore hindering plants' oxygenation. In addition, oceans are considerably suffering from climate change: biodiversity loss (over half of coral reefs have been lost since the 1950s according to an article in the Smithsonian Magazine), ocean water acidification, increase in temperature and much more.

Ocean biodiversity
Social consequences

The contribution of CO2 to accelerating global warming also affects people and communities. The 2021 report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has shown that man-made climate change is already triggering many weather and climate extremes in all regions of the world. This also has an impact on numerous manufacturing operations as well as their employees.

Already today, several regions of the world on all continents are affected by extreme weather events, sea level rise and increasing temperatures (EEA, 2017). The most affected regions can be seen on the map published by Germanwatch. This even shows that Germany is one of the most affected regions with a very high global climate index.

As Haines & Ebi show in their 2019 study on "The Imperative for Climate Action to Protect Health," the consequences of increased greenhouse gas emissions are catastrophic for the environment as well as for people's safety and health. Against this backdrop, there is growing pressure on companies to consider the health risks to workers and their communities associated with air quality, heat waves, ocean erosion and other climate change impacts.

Economic consequences

As described above, CO2 emissions generate consequences on the environment and on the people. What is often left out in the public discourse, is how CO2 affects the economy. Climate change risks will soon have to be fully integrated into companies' strategies and costs, as the impacts such as, for example, local and international conflicts around resources such as water and forests, will well affect manufacturing activities. Increased number of conflicts, natural disasters, health hazards, mass migration and many more aspects related to climate change will thus become costly for states and businesses worldwide. According to the Swiss Re Institute, climate change is a far greater threat to global economy than the Covid-19 pandemic (Ng, 2022).

Hence, ironically, GHGs generated in activities favoring the economy on the short-term will end up impacting it negatively in the middle and long-term, possibly making the world lose around 10% of total economic value by 2050, due to climate change (Swiss Re Institute, 2021).

The German government, for example, has just established the total cost of climate disasters on its economy, which has suffered over 80 billion euros in damage and lost earnings. The exceptional heat waves and droughts of the summers of 2018 and 2019 alone have caused costs of some 35 billion euros, affecting in particular agriculture and forests. The report published by the Ministries of Climate and Environment takes into account the damage against infrastructure, which is often covered by insurance, but also the loss of earnings caused by climate problems for the economy and the productivity losses caused (BMUV, 2022).

In our next article, we explain some of the reasons why CO2 reduction action remains slow. In the meantime, find out more about how sustamize can support your climate transformation with the use of accurate CO2data.

Related to this topic: "How CO2 Causes Global Warming", "Why Aren’t We Moving Forward With Drastic CO2 Reduction?", "Our Contribution to Solving the CO2 Issue".

Sources

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Buis, A. (October 9, 2019). The Atmosphere: Getting a Handle on Carbon Dioxide. Sizing Up Humanity's Impacts on Earth's Changing Atmosphere​: A Five-Part Series. NASA. Access: https://climate.nasa.gov/news/2915/the-atmosphere-getting-a-handle-on-carbon-dioxide/

Duck Unlimited Canada (n.d). Wetlands: A Powerful Carbon Sink. Access: https://www.ducks.ca/resources/educators/wetland-carbon-sink/

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European Environment Agency (EEA) (2017). Key observed and projected climate change and impacts for the main regions in Europe. Access: https://www.eea.europa.eu/data-and-maps/figures/key-past-and-projected-impacts-and-effects-on-sectors-for-the-main-biogeographic-regions-of-europe-5

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