4 ms·
So this is quite interesting: could it be that the total volume of ore excavated per year is comparable to the total volume of new seawater from melting ice? It
by semi-extrinsic 11y ago
So this is quite interesting: could it be that the total volume of ore excavated per year is comparable to the total volume of new seawater from melting ice? It looks like 5e13 kilograms of ore are excavated per year [1]. At an average density of <5 kg/l, that is the same volume as 1e13 kg of water, or 1/20 times the meltwater from Greenland. No solution to rising oceans :(
[1] http://www.ilocis.org/documents/chpt74e.htm http://www.ilocis.org/documents/chpt74e.htm
- mturmon 11y agoOK, I read this and I had some disbelief. It starts with a total of 23 billion tonnes of ore, and ends with a volume equivalent to 1.5 meters of the whole country of Switzerland being excavated per year. That seemed high, but it turns out that independent estimates of just coal excavation are 8 billion tonnes per year. So my disbelief was wrong. And then, looking at it the other way, this makes it evident how much burning all that coal could change global CO2.