Comment by Geee
5 hours ago
Animals or humans don't cause any net emissions, because the same carbon was captured from the atmosphere in the first place. No new carbon is added. Also, the same amount of methane is broken down in the atmosphere as is created. Increasing co2 is only possible by burning fossil fuels.
Talking in terms of "carbon" is misleading. Methane is much more potent than CO2. I don't know why you think methane is broken down at the same rate as it is added.
- Cattle release methane
- Forests are burnt to make room for crops/grazing
- Fertilizer for crops for cattle produces nitrous oxide
I do not claim this adds up to 60%, but to suggest it is zero is incorrect.
Methane is broken down with a few years delay, but still the same amount is breaking down as is produced. Think of a long pipe which takes a few years to travel through and it's fed at a constant rate. Total methane in the atmosphere stays constant.
But that still means you have a couple of years with a higher concentration of methane, and given the higher impact this is obviously very relevant, no?
No new carbon would be added if we were talking about hunting buffalo on the great plains. But we're talking about industrial agriculture and each calorie produced does have associated fossil fuel emissions