Carbon and Man’s Carbon Footprint

Hominid (early form of man) footprints preserved by a volcanic eruption and rainfall 3.6 million years ago, found in present day Tanzania (1976). Early man’s presence or his ancestors have left footprints and now man is leaving a different type of footprint, called the Carbon Footprint. In 4 million years from now, what kind of footprints will be left behind by man, to be found by those who follow?

To some, carbon is the most dastardly and evil substance since the dawn of time. According to some environmentalists, Man has been increasing his carbon footprint at an alarming rate. His carbon footprint has to be offset by carbon offsets. He has to seek absolution, the modern equivalent of Papal Indulgences for his mortal (carbon) sins. Only the High Priest of Global Warming can forgive his sins. Carbon pollution and the resulting Global Warming are the result of Man. Man has been violating the balance of Nature since he first stepped into the ecosystem. Until Man arrived on the scene, the balance of Nature was intact. It appears that only the eradication of Man will save the earth?

Before the advent of Man, where on this planet we call Earth and in the vast Universe could carbon be found? Well it turns out that after hydrogen, helium and oxygen, carbon is the fourth most abundant element by mass in the Universe. Pure carbon is found as amorphous carbon (soot), graphite (soft steel-gray to black crystalline form, used today in lead pencils) and as diamonds, one of the hardest crystalline substances. Like silicon, carbon has four outer electrons that form four single bonds. In addition to carbon chemically combining with itself, with single bonds, it can form double and triple chemical bonds and bond to many other elements forming organic and inorganic compounds. Following the Big Bang and the creation of Universe (about 14 billion years ago), our solar system evolved about 4.5 billion years ago. Carbon in the form of methane, a hydrocarbon (organic compound) can be found on one of the moons of Jupiter. There don’t appear to be any life forms on Titan to account for the methane. Scientists now believe as the earth has seas of water, there may be seas of methane on the cold surface of Titan. On earth, methane is found as a primary component in natural gas along with other small hydrocarbons; methane is the simplest building block of the non-aromatic hydrocarbons found in petroleum or crude oil. Natural gas, petroleum along with coal, are known as fossil fuels derived from long-buried plants (millions of years ago) and microorganisms. These forms of energy, power our modern industry and way of life.

After the formation of the earth, earlier forms of carbon were found in the early 4.5 billion year old atmosphere. After the initial hot gaseous ball of fire, the earth gradually cooled and over time, evolved into its present composition. Early on, the atmospheric gases hydrogen and helium escaped earth’s gravitational attraction and diffused into space. Later, because of volcanic activity, carbon dioxide (CO2) became a major component (plus other gases); its concentration was much higher than it is today. Carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide (incomplete oxidation) are inorganic carbon compounds. So carbon dioxide along with smaller amounts of methane, were major contributors to the greenhouse gases at the time. Without these gases, the earth would have remained a ball of ice. The sun at the time was only about 75% as bright as it is today. Life as we know it may not have evolved without the early high concentrations of carbon dioxide, producing the first greenhouse global warming.

Carbon has been around since the earliest days of the planet. Life (which is carbon based), in its infancy about three and a half billion years ago, formed as single cell microorganisms in the oceans that covered large portions of the planet. At first, life was anaerobic; the atmosphere was void of any measurable amount of oxygen. Oxygen was poisonous to these early life forms. Over time as carbon dioxide dissolved in the oceans and was fixed in rocks, new life forms evolved that used the energy from the sun to convert carbon dioxide and water (photosynthesis) into a new form of carbon (carbohydrates) and oxygen. Without CO2, plant life would not exist, therefore Man would not exist. The atmosphere evolved into its present composition of 21 percent oxygen, 78 percent nitrogen, 0.93 percent argon and 0.04 percent carbon dioxide.

Today there are about ten million organic (carbon) compounds including DNA (the foundation of life), proteins, carbohydrates (sugars) and lipids. This includes the organic compounds that make up microorganisms, plant and animal species. In addition, many organic compounds have been made by Man. Countless beneficial products have resulted from synthesizing organic chemicals, medicines such as penicillin-like antibiotics (pharmaceuticals), and polymers used in tires, clothing, furniture, floor coverings, vinyl siding, containers to preserve food plus many other uses. Steel an alloy made of iron and a small amount of carbon, is used for building ships, cars, buildings and planes. Looking to the future, carbon nanotubes (cylindrical carbon molecules) may be used to replace carbon steel, due to the fact they are stronger than steel. Furthermore, carbon nanotubes have electrical properties that make them a possible replacement for copper electrical wiring and microcircuitry (computers). In summary, carbon has many beneficial uses; life itself and our quality and quantity of life would not exist and/or would be limited without carbon.

So carbon is more complicated than just the word “carbon” or the carbon footprint. What environmentalists are talking about, are excessive carbon dioxide, methane and other byproducts, out of the millions of beneficial carbon compounds. Carbon dioxide is a natural byproduct of oxidation and respiration (life forms), part of the carbon chemical cycle. Is Man the major contributor to the present increases in carbon dioxide and in addition to other pollutants, causing global change (global warming)? During The Cretaceous Period, when dinosaurs roamed the Earth, CO2 levels were five to ten times higher than they are today. In addition, approximately 55 million years ago, (Paleocene-Eocene thermal maximum (PETM)), there was a major magnitude of global warming. Massive amounts of carbon dioxide were added to the atmosphere long before the advent of the automobile and dramatically changed the climate. No one is disputing today's global change, and that man has a role in what might be happening. But the earth has gone through a number of cycles of global heating and cooling. The last ice age ended about ten thousand years ago and ushered in Modern Man. The debate is not over, it has just started.

However, regardless of the fact that we might be in a cycle of global warming, we have to look to renewable clean resources of energy but at the same time, we have to bridge the change with continued use of domestic fossil fuels. Solar, wind, cellulosic ethanol, hydraulic (water) turbines, nuclear, coal (with CO2 sequestration), natural gas, and petroleum can used in concert with conservation and recycling, to solve our domestic energy requirements. The War on Terrorism and our weakened Economy, demand that we don't do anything rash.

Modern science is based on theories, laws and models. However, our understanding of science is in a constant state of evolution. Our comprehension (knowledge) of what is happening in the Universe (and on Earth), continues to changed and be updated; only time will tell if we are moving in the right direction, including global change. Man has to continue to make observations, collect data and interpret the data objectively. Using the Scientific Method is the only way to obtain objective knowledge. Scientific debate must never cease, if it does, then we are no longer talking about scientific knowledge but a belief system (religion). In this last situation, the scientists are replaced by the priests, the high priests of global warming.