Carbon Cycling, Photosynthesis/Respiration, and Biomes: Carbon’s Role in Global Climate Change C Global Climate Change Education: Biology Module Carbon Cycling Carbon Cycling and Global Climate Change Major Concepts: 1) Carbon - 4th most common element on Earth - THE building block of life 2) Carbon cycles among biotic and abiotic reservoirs - sources and sinks - different timescales of movement (hours to millions of years) 3) Atmospheric carbon in the form of CO2 - increasing rapidly - now at exceptionally high concentrations - high concentration adds to the Earth’s natural greenhouse effect - affects global climate 4) Primary source of increasing atmospheric CO2 - human activity 5) We can reduce the rate and magnitude of CO2 increase in the atmosphere and address global climate change. First a bit about carbon • Fourth most common element on Earth (H, He, O, C) First a bit about carbon • • Carbon’s atomic structure allows it to bind to up to four other elements at once This makes carbon very important for living things First a bit about carbon • Carbon is THE building block of life First a bit about carbon • • Where is carbon found? Where does it go? First a bit about carbon That is what you will discover in today’s activity! Carbon Cycling • • • • Atmosphere-gases surrounding our planet Biosphere-all the living things on our planet Hydrosphere-all of the salt and fresh water on our planet Lithosphere-all the rocks and minerals on our planet Carbon Cycling Air (Atmosphere) Water (Hydrosphere) Land (Lithosphere) Organisms (Biosphere) Source and Sink • • Source-an area where carbon is easily removed Sink-an area where carbon is not easily removed and therefore can build up over time Source and Sink • • In the carbon cycle atoms move to and from these source and sink areas all the time Movement can happen at very different time scalesfrom hours to millions of years How can carbon “move”? • • • • • • Diffusion Photosynthesis Respiration Combustion Sedimentation Erosion How can carbon “move”? • Diffusion-process by which molecules move from an area of high concentration to an area of low concentration How can carbon “move”? • Photosynthesis-production of sugar (C6H12O6) from solar energy, CO2 and water by plants and other photosynthetic organisms How can carbon “move”? • • • Respiration-the metabolism of sugars (C6H12O6) to produce chemical energy for growth and reproduction One of the major byproducts is CO2 gas All living things respire, both plants and animals How can carbon “move”? • • Combustion-carbon locked in living and dead organic matter under proper conditions of heat and oxygen rapidly oxidize or burn This releases energy in the form of heat and produces gases such as carbon monoxide (CO) and carbon dioxide (CO2) How can carbon “move”? • Sedimentationslow accumulation of material in one place. Over long periods of time this material can solidify and form rock How carbon can “move”? • Fossil fuels can be considered a special type of sedimentation How can carbon “move”? • • Erosion- the process by which particles of soil are washed into water. This term is also used to describe the breakdown of harder materials such as rock due to the action of water Why is carbon cycling important? • • • For the last 1000 years the carbon cycle has been in balance In the last 100 years carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has been rising Carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere are higher now than in the last 20 million years Greenland Ice core data Graph by Robert Simmon, based on data from the NOAA Climate Monitoring & Diagnostics Laboratory Why is carbon cycling important? • • • For the last 1000 years the carbon cycle has been in balance In the last 100 years carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has been rising Carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere are higher now than in the last 20 million years Graph by Robert Simmon, based on data from the NOAA Climate Monitoring & Diagnostics Laboratory Ice core data Carbon and global climate change •CO2 is a greenhouse gas which help keep the planet warm •Too much CO2 may lead to global warming. •Why? Carbon and global climate change • • • CO2 is the most significant greenhouse gas. Levels of CO2 are increasing Why? Why more CO2? •The human population has grown tremendously in the last 200 years •All those people need and use energy Why more CO2? • In the late 1800’s (1850-1870) The industrial revolution occurred Why more CO2? •Most of that energy comes from fossil fuels…a carbon sink Why more CO2? •Most of that energy comes from fossil fuels…a carbon sink Other human impacts • • Remember that plants and other photosynthetic organisms are important for removing CO2 from the atmosphere. Slash and burn agriculture and urbanization are reducing the amount of carbon that can be removed Human impacts • As humans clear more land and burn more fossil fuels we dramatically increase the amount of CO2 going into the atmosphere What can we do? • • • Some questions remain unanswered about the carbon cycle. We do know that humans have produced a large amount of CO2 and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere based many different types of data Production of CO2 continues to this date, but it is something that we can control Energy Use • • Reduce fossil fuel use Non-fossil fuel energy sources • • • • • • • Solar Wind Hydroelectric Hydrogen Biofuels Nuclear Geothermal Carbon Mitigation • Carbon sequestration • Forestry-carbon bound up in forest products • Agriculture-no till • CO2 injection-coal seams and saline aquifers • Biochar Carbon Cycling and Global Climate Change Major Concepts & Summary: 1) Carbon - 4th most common element on Earth - THE building block of life 2) Carbon cycles among biotic and abiotic reservoirs - Sources and sinks atmosphere biosphere hydrosphere lithosphere - Different timescales of movement (hours to millions of years) diffusion photosynthesis respiration combustion sedimentation erosion Carbon Cycling and Global Climate Change Major Concepts & Summary: 3) Atmospheric carbon in the form of CO2 - increasing rapidly 100 years - now at exceptionally high concentrations higher than last 20 million years - high concentration adds to the Earth’s natural greenhouse effect - affects global climate 4) Primary source of increasing atmospheric CO2 - human activity burning of fossil fuels releases carbon from lithosphere 5) We can reduce the rate and magnitude of CO2 increase in the atmosphere and address global climate change. reduce fossil fuel use through conservation and efficiency use non-fossil fuel energy sources carbon sequestration