Today’s quick math:

• A tree will absorb about 2 metric tons of CO2 in it’s lifetime, most of it during the first 50-100 years depending on the kind of tree. Let’s calculate with an average of 20kg per year. (Note: Some scientists claim that a tree can absorbe 1 ton of CO2 per year, but that doesn’t make sense, does it?)
• A tree needs space to grow. For the sake of simplicity, let’s say 20 square meters.
• The Sahara, Arabian, Gobi, Patagonian, Great Victoria, Great Basin, Chihuahuan, and Great Sandy deserts together take up 15 trillion 400 billion square meters of land, absorbing zero CO2 in its natural state.
• That’s enough space for about 770 billion trees absorbing about 1kg of CO2 per square meter and year.
• The world’s countries are polluting the atmosphere with about 27 trillion kg of CO2 annually.

See, I’m on my way to save the world here! This tree-planting activity would take care of more than half of the world’s CO2 emissions, create millions of opportunities for developing countries and turn dead land into productive soil.

If we could only figure out a way to effectively, sustainably and responsively water the deserts…

Posted on July 22nd, 2008 by Linus
Filed under: Climate change, Philosophical