3 ms·

The average lifetime co2 emissions per person seems to be in the tens or hundreds of tons (probably on the higher end of the spectrum for Americans, especially

The average lifetime co2 emissions per person seems to be in the tens or hundreds of tons (probably on the higher end of the spectrum for Americans, especially those decades in the latter half of the 20th century). Most trees weigh a single digit number of tons when fully grown, and many trees don't survive to full growth and in any case they may release much of that carbon through decay or combustion. It seems pretty unlikely to me that planting a tree actually offset your carbon emissions.

egberts1 3y ago
ah, yes, a throwaway account. At least, provide for some citation to be worthy. https://www.globe.gov/explore-science/scientists-blog/archived-posts/sciblog/2008/08/11/release-of-carbon-dioxide-by-individual-humans/comment-page-1/index.html https://www.globe.gov/explore-science/scientists-blog/archiv...
- throwaway894345 3y ago
  1. My account is older than yours and has far more reputation. It's no more a throwaway than yours--it just contains the sequence of characters "throwaway". 2. Your link is about co2 exhaled which is a tiny fraction of a person's overall co2 emissions. 3. According to https://scied.ucar.edu/learning-zone/climate-solutions/carbon-footprint https://scied.ucar.edu/learning-zone/climate-solutions/carbo..., the average American's carbon footprint is about 16 tons of co2 per year multiplied by the average American's lifespan of 77 years equals 1,200 tons of co2. According to every source I could find, the overwhelming majority of trees in the United States weigh a single digit number of tons fully grown, and trees aren't pure-carbon either. Further, many trees don't reach maturity and of those that do many release their carbon via decay and combustion.
  - egberts1 3y ago
    Thanks for the update. Due diligence was needed ... by me. (Then again, I often read about a trillion trees on this surface of this ball of mass, but quantization approach of this scale isn't my cup of tea).

egberts1 3y ago

ah, yes, a throwaway account. At least, provide for some citation to be worthy. https://www.globe.gov/explore-science/scientists-blog/archived-posts/sciblog/2008/08/11/release-of-carbon-dioxide-by-individual-humans/comment-page-1/index.html https://www.globe.gov/explore-science/scientists-blog/archiv...

throwaway894345 3y ago
1. My account is older than yours and has far more reputation. It's no more a throwaway than yours--it just contains the sequence of characters "throwaway". 2. Your link is about co2 exhaled which is a tiny fraction of a person's overall co2 emissions. 3. According to https://scied.ucar.edu/learning-zone/climate-solutions/carbon-footprint https://scied.ucar.edu/learning-zone/climate-solutions/carbo..., the average American's carbon footprint is about 16 tons of co2 per year multiplied by the average American's lifespan of 77 years equals 1,200 tons of co2. According to every source I could find, the overwhelming majority of trees in the United States weigh a single digit number of tons fully grown, and trees aren't pure-carbon either. Further, many trees don't reach maturity and of those that do many release their carbon via decay and combustion.
- egberts1 3y ago
  Thanks for the update. Due diligence was needed ... by me. (Then again, I often read about a trillion trees on this surface of this ball of mass, but quantization approach of this scale isn't my cup of tea).