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The Arctic Is Leaking Methane

Posted by kdawson on from the thar-she-blows dept.

registerShift and other readers sent in news that the Arctic Ocean seabed is leaking methane. "...climate experts familiar with the new research reported in Friday's issue of the journal Science that even though it does not suggest imminent climate catastrophe, it is important because of methane's role as a greenhouse gas. Although carbon dioxide is far more abundant and persistent in the atmosphere, ton for ton atmospheric methane traps at least 25 times as much heat. ... [One scientist] estimated that annual methane emissions from the East Siberian Arctic Shelf total about seven teragrams. (A teragram is 1.1 million tons.) By some estimates, global methane emissions total about 500 teragrams a year. ...about 40 percent is natural, including the decomposition of organic materials in wetlands and frozen wetlands like permafrost."

3 of 303 comments (clear)

  1. It's the waste of... by carlhaagen · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    ...past civilizations, possibly arctic such (today we have evidence of the poles once having a warm, tropic climate) emerging for us, as a form of price to pay for our ancestors' cimres; these past civilizations' crimes against Gaia. And we, in turn, are of course doing a great job of leaving nice presents behind for future civilizations to suffer from.

    1. Re:It's the waste of... by ItsJustAPseudonym · · Score: 1, Flamebait

      All that methane was locked-up in the ice long ago. In those times, humans had much less of an impact on the environment, so the methane probably came from natural sources. Therefore, it is not from "our ancestors crimes".

      The fact that it is being released NOW, however, is due to current effects, which may indeed be anthropogenic in origin. i.e. We're screwing ourselves now.

  2. Re:Let It Burn! by Kuroji · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    You're forgetting that the manmade global warming advocates like to latch onto every alarmist headline that they can and tout it everywhere. Such statements of fact merely get in the way of their agenda.

    Can you say -1 flamebait, kids? I knew you could. Won't be the first time I get modded down for speaking the truth.