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“Humanity has never been here before. The atmosphere hasn’t seen CO2 this high for hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of years. Climate scientists say the rise of heat-trapping greenhouse gases is already putting weather systems on steroids, with substantial human and economic costs now in evidence. We are in dangerous and uncharted territory, with little time to ensure a safe and sustainable future.”

John ConnorCEO, The Climate Institute

Carbon 101

This presentation summarises Carbon 101, a primer explaining carbon and why it matters. It was initially released in July 2012 and was updated in May 2013 as the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere approached a record daily average of 400 parts per million; a level not seen in hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of years.

The Climate Institute is an independent research organisation. Its vision is for a resilient Australia, prospering in a zero-carbon global economy, participating fully and fairly in international climate change solutions.

May 2013

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Depending on how you look at it, carbon can be good or bad. It occurs naturally – in fact human bodies contain carbon. But it is also emitted from industrial action.

Here when we talk about carbon we mean the emissions of greenhouse gases, particularly carbon dioxide (CO2).

What is carbon?

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What is carbon?

Carbon is the sixth most abundant element in the universe.

There are nearly ten million known carbon compounds and an entire branch of chemistry, organic chemistry, is devoted to their study. Renowned for its ability to stitch living things together, carbon has earnt its nickname as the ‘duct tape of life’.

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Carbon makes up 18% of humanbodyweight.

Trees in Australia’s native forests are natural stores of about 660 billion tonnes of carbon.

A one-carat diamond can be considered a single huge molecule consisting of 1022 carbon atoms.

The basics

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A 90-tonne whale contains approximately 9 tonnes of carbon.

100% of life on Earth containscarbon compounds.

There is 50 times more carbon in the ocean than in the air.

The basics

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Most of Earth’s carbon, about 65,500 billion tonnes, is stored in rocks.

Nearly 60% of decomposedorganic matter in soil is carbon.

Carbon is the sixth most abundant element in the universe.

The basics

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An element whose atoms easily attach to other atoms to become the basis of all living organisms. Also shorthand for carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases.

A colourless greenhouse gas that traps heat in the Earth’s atmosphere, formed by respiration or the combustion of carbon. Other greenhouse gases are often converted to CO2 equivalents (CO2-e).

CO2 and other greenhouse gases released by humans which accumulate in the air, trap heat, and raise the average global temperature, upsetting the natural balance.

Carbon Jargon

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Carbon Jargon

A term used to describe a future global economy where economic activity produces zero net carbon emissions.

The amount of GDP produced per unit of carbon pollution emitted.

A country or company’s level of readiness to prosper in a low-carbon global economy.

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Buying and selling carbon permits in a market.

The right to emit carbon pollution, measuredin tonnes.

A monetary cost on carbon pollution, intended to stimulate investment in clean energy, energy efficiency and other low-carbon technologies.

Carbon Jargon

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Carbon, the way we view it, measure it, control it and price it has come to dominate debates of all kinds.

So, what’s all the fuss about?

The Problem

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CO2 is emitted when oxygen and carbon are combined –either by nature via living organisms through respiration and decomposition – or when humans burn fossil fuels such as coal, gas and oil.

Rising emissions of CO2 from the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation are altering the Earth’s atmosphere and changing the global climate.

Atmospheric CO2 levels are already 40 per cent higher than before the Industrial Revolution.

If carbon emissions continue to rise, the average global temperature will increase at a speed not seen since the end of the last Ice Age.

The Problem

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Current concentrations of carbon dioxide - near 400 parts per million (ppm) – are higher than they’ve been in hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of years. Scientists associate 400 ppm with the Pliocene epoch, from about 3 to 5 million years ago, when the world was 3°C warmer, the seas 25 metres higher, and the Greenland ice sheet was impermanent.

A multitude of stakeholders are now looking at carbon: scientists, economists, companies, governments and communities.

With billions of people living on an already resource-constrained planet, a changing climate puts at risk farming and food supply, cities and coastal communities, and our very way of life.

The Problem

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Where does good carbon go bad?A System out of Balance. Earth’s natural systems are only able to absorb approximately 50% of our current annual CO2 emissions.

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The ImbalanceWe need to better understand the carbon cycle, to slow certain processes so specific gases don’t build up in excess in the air, and find ways to reduce the amount already released. It is an issue of management.

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The international community has set a goal to stabilise concentrations of CO2

and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere at a level that aims to keep global warming to below 2ºC.

Only 20-40% of global known fossil fuel reserves can be burnt if we are to have a reasonable chance of meeting this goal.

Just like housing price bubbles, we have a carbon bubble with potentially unsellable carbon assets on the books of our companies.

Addressing the challenge

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What is the carbon bubble?

Australia is facing a carbon bubble.

Just as sub-prime investments were based on assumptions of permanently rising house prices, carbon bubble or ‘sub-clime’, investments assume relentless demand for fossil fuels.

If the world acts to limit temperature rise to 2ºC, investments in Australian coal that may seem sound at the moment could easily turn into stranded assets that cannot be sold.

Australian coal against the global carbon budget for coal.

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Questions of fairness are central to climate change. If only a limited amount of CO2 can be released in the atmosphere, who has the right to emit it?

Quick Facts

+ The average Australian produces four times more CO2 can the average global citizen.

+ A citizen of Kiribati, a small Pacific island nation, produces 1/16th of the global average.

+ An Australian or American produces 64 times time amount of someone from Kiribati, and three times more than a Chinese person.

What is fair?

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What is fair?

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In a high-carbon economy, carbon emissions have been coupled to economic growth, whilst future generations and the environment are largely excluded from the equation.

The pursuit of short-term growth at any cost is neither sustainable nor fair. We need to factor in the finite nature of our natural resources and the real cost of carbon pollution.

Our future should hold a new low and then zero carbon prosperity.

Where do we go from here?

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“Because it’s in our national interest to avoid further dangerous warming, Australia joined the US, China and over 170 other countries to commit to avoid a 2°C warming. We have no time to lose.

As we change the chemical make-up of the atmosphere, we are pushing up the average global temperature. Reaching 400 part per million is one more clear alarm bell which we ignore at great risk, because, when it comes to extreme weather and climate impacts, ‘we ain’t seen nothing yet’!”

John ConnorCEO, The Climate Institute

Conclusion

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Additional ResourcesTo download The Climate Institute’s Carbon 101 explainer or listen to the podcast with Dr Graeme Pearman and Andrew Demetriou visit…

http://www.climateinstitute.org.au/carbon-101.html

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