Surrounded By Carbon?

I have always adored diamond jewellery. Something about the way it catches light and twists it imprison my eyes. And simultaneously I wonder why this allotrope of carbon is so high-priced when our primary aim is to reduce another form of carbon- carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to reduce global warming.

We have all been taught since kindergarten that we need oxygen for our basic survival and we exhale carbon dioxide which is taken up by the plants to produce oxygen. And the cycle continues. And a notion is created in our head that plants are the primary carbon dioxide eliminators.

Highschool taught us to plant trees and prevent deforestation to reduce global warming because the trees are the lungs which purify the air from carbon dioxide.

Wait, before I move on, let me tell you a bit about what global warming actually is. There are certain gases like carbon dioxide, methane, oxides or nitrogen, sulfur, CFCs, etc which accumulate in the atmosphere and trap the sunlight. These gases in the normal amount is required to keep the earth at optimal temperature and to prevent the freezing of the planet. However, when the amount of greenhose gases exceed, the sunlight trapped is more as it cannot exit the atmosphere since it acts as a shield. This increases the overall temperature where differences can be calucalted on a yearly basis.

And now, this extra heat is the reason why articles about climate change is showing up in the newspapers all the time. You hear about ice glaciers melting which increase the waterlevel causing floods which in turn cause obstuction to pisciculture and other activities dependent on waterbodies leading to economic losses. Countries clash not just for money but also for water because somewhere else on earth, there is a drought due to extreme heat. Water scarcity puts pressure on agricultural demands ultimately leading to starvation and deaths.

When the migratory birds no longer know which direction to follow, when the wind that once gently touched your face is now a hot tornado, and when endemic animals are dying due to the extreme temperature differences, do you wish to do your part to reduce the impact of this domino?

Next time you find yourself sweating profusely even when you’re doing nothing, blame yourself for using the car instead of walking to the store nearby, or for using the aircon unnecessarily or for incinerating your plastic wastes when most of it could have been recycled.

So, you planted a tree to feel less guilty? It’s nice to know that you’re helping another life to survive but did you know that oceans contibute the most to reduce global warming than forests ever did? Yeah. How can big blue vastness reduce trapped heat more efficiently than leafy greenary? Well, its all because of this bacteria called Prochlorococcus marinus. It is a photosynthetic picoplankton which is the most abundant photosynthetic organism in this big blue planet.

Then why were we taught since the time we were in diapers that plants are the unstoppable, most efficient photosynthetic organisms? Its all for this economic program called “Carbon Syncing”. Afforestation is turned into a business by industries and countries to “sync” for the carbon emissions of other places and in turn to get paid for it. Ofcourse, the principle behind carbon syncing is to reduce global warming by bringing in carbon neutrality; but when funding for the emission trading programs become the primary principle, we need to come up with a mask to hide the greed on our faces. When the planet itself becomes the ultimate sacrifice with all its organisms in a slow death race from the impacts of excessive greenhouse gases, false education is the key to create mirages within people so that belief is established that no one is being cheated. Economic benefits is still everything, you see?

The second best way to tackle global warming is to bring down water pollution and to encourage the growth and survival of the prochlorococcus bacteria. Third comes afforestation.

But do you know what the best method to stop global warming is? The best method is to reduce greed.

Are we actually surrounded by carbon or is it greed?

Just think about it.