Neither H2O (water) nor CO2 (carbon dioxide) are pollutants.
CO2, carbon dioxide:
- Is essential for all life on earth;
- Is just 0.04% of earth’s air – four one hundredths of a per cent;
- Is scientifically classified as a trace gas because there is so little of it
- Is non-toxic; not noxious;
- Is highly beneficial to, and essential for, plants;
- Is colourless, odourless, tasteless;
- Natural – nature produces 97 per cent of the carbon dioxide produced annually on Earth;
- Does not discolour the air;
- Does not impair the quality of water or soil;
- Does not create light, heat, noise or radioactivity;
- Does not distort our senses.
- Does not degrade the environment nor impair its usefulness nor render it offensive;
- Does not make land water or air dirty or unsafe to use;
- Does not cause disease;
- Does not harm ecosystems and is essential for ecosystems;
- Does not harm plants &animals. Essential for plants and animals;
- Does not cause discomfort, instability or disorder;
- Does not accumulate;
- Does not upset nature’s balance;
- Remains in the air for only a short time before nature cycles it into plants, animal tissue, and natural accumulations;
- Does not contaminate apart from nature’s extremely high and concentrated volumes from some volcanoes and then only locally and briefly under rare natural conditions when in concentrations and amounts far higher than anything humans can produce;
- Is not a foreign substance;
- In past more than 130 times higher in conc’, in air than today.
In some locations within nature other atoms can be included with hydrocarbons as impurities in the resource deposit. These can include for example, Sulphur (S) and Nitrogen (N) among others. When these are burned in oxygen they produce sulphur dioxide (SO2) and nitrous oxides (NOx).
Along with particulates that are small particles of soot or smoke, these are real pollutants. Fortunately, real science has led to technology that removes virtually all such pollutants at the source or after combustion of the hydrocarbon fuel. This is why modern cities in developed countries have clean, healthy air.
Malcolm, I have read with interest your comments above and also the remarks you have made in the Senate regarding the the incompetence and, I believe, dishonesty of CSIRO at https://wattsupwiththat.com/2020/09/01/watch-an-aussie-politician-squirm-as-malcolm-roberts-demands-evidence-climate-change-is-a-problem/ .
I was amazed and disgusted the other week, listening to Dr Larry Marshal, a physicist and head of CSIRO addressing “Meet the Press”. Most of his talk was good but at the end he raised the issue of the ‘contribution of the beef industry to Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions of 14% through the burping of methane.’ I have written to several people in CSIRO and elsewhere on this silly claim which I believe has the potential to damage one of our great industries and our nation’s health, by discouraging the healthy eating of red meat.
The fact is that ruminants in large numbers and not dissimilar to the present day, have roamed the earth for probably thousands of years while together with white ants and peat bogs producing methane, yet the atmospheric concentration of methane has not increased. The reason for this of course is simple and is that methane in the atmosphere breaks down with a half life of between 5 and 14 years – depending on who is writing! – or 7.5 or 10 years….. Taking the longest period for decay, 14 years, it is very easy to show that for a given number of animals (or insects), after about 68 years, the amount which decays in a year, is equal to the new production of methane in that year. Hence there is NO net contribution to methane in the atmosphere, no 14% contribution to our greenhouse gas, even if such contribution mattered of course.
I have NEVER had any response from anyone I have contacted on this matter. I have written to Larry Marshal twice but not received any reply. However, I will continue to fill up his ‘in box’ and those of others. Best wishes, keep up your good work, John Nicol jonicol18@bigpond.com
May I also add that the absorption band for methane, although strong for small quantities, is within one of the broader water vapour bands and thus has next to no added GHG effect. Spending money trying to reduce methane emissions from herbivores is a complete waste.