Fossil fuels and the carbon cycle

In 2019, how much was global energy consumption made up of fossil fuels?

84%

How much carbon do fossil fuels release annually?

10 billion tonnes of CO2

Annually how much does fossil fuels add to CO2 concentration in the atmosphere?

1 ppm

What are the current levels of CO2 concentrations?

415 ppm - highest for 800,000 years

How much anthropogenic carbon emissions add to the atmosphere?

less than 10%

What is the main driver of global warmings?

• The combustion of fossil fuels

• The transfer of carbon to geological stores to the atmosphere and oceans

What is the process of Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS)?

• It removes CO2 from the atmosphere and stores it underground.

• The CO2 is taken from power station emissions and compressed and transported by pipeline to storage areas.

• It injected into porous rocks deep underground where it is stored permanently.

What are the positives of CCS?

• Reduces CO2 and other greenhouse gases - can reduce 80-90% of USA’s emissions.

What are the negatives of CCS?

• Big capital costs - expensive to build (£1 bil)

• Uses large amounts of energy - 20% of power plant’s energy

• Requires storage reservoirs with specific requirements

What is the Drax project?

• Instead of burning fossil fuels the Drax power station in North Yorkshire would burn biomass.

• This has been criticised by wildlife campaigners as it requires the deforestation of old growth forest trees that cannot replace the biodiversity.

• There is a CCS project near Drax, designed to capture 2 mil tonnes of CO2 per year, commenced operation in 2019.

• The CO2 would be transported by pipeline to the North Sea and stored in depleted gas reservoirs. CO2 gas can also be pumped into mature oil fields to extract oil that would be other wised be uneconomic to recover