- It takes trees decades to reach optimum uptake levels
- It requires more than just a tree to make a healthy trees. Fungi in the soil, insects, adequate rainfall and all sorts of other biodiversity
- [1] Young trees absorb around 13lbs a year of CO2 (this is going to vary considerably by species) and at a decade old around 48lbs a year
>better solution than slowing down production
It appears in the past 2 decades CO2 emissions are up 25%. In the past decade about 6%. [2]
>I don't want to be too pessimistic, but even if the US and EU become carbon neutral tomorrow,
Where did I say the US and EU. Climate change isn't a single country's problem, or a dozen countries, it's a human problem. Planting trees is being 'too optimistic'
>China is about to overtake US as the biggest air travel market in 2020
Between 1986 and 2012 aviation fuel usage more than DOUBLED going from 2.6 million barrels a day to 5.3 million barrels a day [3], and IIRC from past research for another thread earlier this year. 42 gallons per barrel.
1 gallon of jet fuel will prorduce about 20lbs of CO2 [4]. If we average out the above tree figures we get 30.5 lbs a year per tree. The United States alone used 17.866 billion gallons for air travel in 2018 [5] meaning, if my math is right, 11.71 billion trees are needed just to handle that. Just between 2017 and 2018 the United States alone used half a billion more gallons.
Trees aren't a solution. They are a dollar store bandaid that you've removed 3 times and them tried to press back onto your skin after you got out of the pool.
I am not necessarily advocating on the tree solution, as someone else has pointed out, it's terribly inefficient as a carbon capture method. I am more arguing that it's more effective to say "how can we find a better alternative" than "How can we change the way everyone does thing". General population does not behave in a rational manner and its often short sighted, we can't expect societal self discipline as the main solution against climate change.
In the US and EU we are generally conscious about environment on a personal level (lifestyle etc), but the majority of the growing pollution will come from the upcoming superpowers, and they have very little intention of hindering their economic development with very radical environmental policies.
Take air travel for example, there is absolutely no way China and India will slow down their airline industry's growth. We need to start treating this fact as roadblocks, and must find solutions around it.
- It takes trees decades to reach optimum uptake levels
- It requires more than just a tree to make a healthy trees. Fungi in the soil, insects, adequate rainfall and all sorts of other biodiversity
- [1] Young trees absorb around 13lbs a year of CO2 (this is going to vary considerably by species) and at a decade old around 48lbs a year
>better solution than slowing down production
It appears in the past 2 decades CO2 emissions are up 25%. In the past decade about 6%. [2]
>I don't want to be too pessimistic, but even if the US and EU become carbon neutral tomorrow,
Where did I say the US and EU. Climate change isn't a single country's problem, or a dozen countries, it's a human problem. Planting trees is being 'too optimistic'
>China is about to overtake US as the biggest air travel market in 2020
Between 1986 and 2012 aviation fuel usage more than DOUBLED going from 2.6 million barrels a day to 5.3 million barrels a day [3], and IIRC from past research for another thread earlier this year. 42 gallons per barrel.
1 gallon of jet fuel will prorduce about 20lbs of CO2 [4]. If we average out the above tree figures we get 30.5 lbs a year per tree. The United States alone used 17.866 billion gallons for air travel in 2018 [5] meaning, if my math is right, 11.71 billion trees are needed just to handle that. Just between 2017 and 2018 the United States alone used half a billion more gallons.
Trees aren't a solution. They are a dollar store bandaid that you've removed 3 times and them tried to press back onto your skin after you got out of the pool.
[1] http://urbanforestrynetwork.org/benefits/air%20quality.htm
[2] https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/en.atm.co2e.pc
[3] https://www.indexmundi.com/energy/?product=jet-fuel
[4] https://paullaherty.com/2015/01/10/calculating-aircraft-co2-...
[5] https://www.transtats.bts.gov/fuel.asp