Short Global Warming Quiz

Many, if not most, of us are probably a little bored with all the crap we hear from competing positions on climate change/global warming. The left believes it; the right ridicules it. Most atmospheric scientists support it though some don't.

Enough already, we think wearily. Let's just get on with our lives and forget all that nonsense.

The question is, how many of us know the rock bottom basics of what is happening on our planet? Not many, is my guess. Here's a very, very short, one question quiz to test your knowledge.

Globally, how much CO2 is injected into the atmosphere each and every year?

     1. One million tons

     2. Ten million tons

     3. One hundred million tons

     4. One billion tons
     5. None of the above

Sadly, for the planet, the answer is #5. If you had guessed in excess of 33 billion metric tons annually you would be right on the money. Of that number, the U.S. alone is responsible for 5.5 billion tons (about 17 percent of the total and holding steady) while China is in first place, a dubious distinction at best, producing more than eight billion tons (about 25 percent of the total and growing fast).

Those 33 billion metric tons mean that for each and every person on Earth we inject about 4.8 tons, or 10,600 pounds, of CO2 annually into the atmosphere and have no intention of ever stopping or not until disaster is literally knocking on our door. FYI: The U.S. per person annual CO2 average is 18 metric tons (about 40,000 pounds), the record for advanced economies.

Another coffin nail.
Sources:
Here are the official government sources: UN Statistics Division (data collected by the CDIAC), http://mdgs.un.org/unsd/mdg/SeriesDetail.aspx?srid=749; and the Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center, U.S. Department of Energy: http://cdiac.ornl.gov/trends/emis/prelim_2009_2010_estimates.html 
       
Here's the easy one to find if you're lazy: 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_carbon_dioxide_emissions
       
Another interesting site: http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/2011/jan/31/world-carbon-dioxide-emissions-country-data-co2