CO2 Absorption Remains Steady

Since 1850, the amount of Carbon Dioxide absorbed by the earths oceans and ecosystems has remained largely unchanged at approximately 50% of the total emissions.

Whether an over-sized SUV today or the numerous horse and buggies plus coal fired factories of the 19th and 20th centuries, the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) remaining airborne rather than being absorbed has altered by only very slight amounts. According to a study performed by a team at University of Bristol U.K. led by Dr Wolfgang Knorr, the changes in the airborne fraction of CO2 has remained virtually unchanged since 1850 at 0.7 ± 1.4% per decade. That would be an amount without statistical distinction from zero Dr Knorr does not recommend continuing to rely on the planets ability to remain able to absorb the increased amounts of CO2, instead he insinuates a new study should be performed to find out why the airborne fraction of CO2 is essentially the same as it was 159 years ago. As reported on the Bristol University website:

Like all studies of this kind, there are uncertainties in the data, so rather than relying on Nature to provide a free service, soaking up our waste carbon, we need to ascertain why the proportion being absorbed has not changed. Wolfgang Knorr

One primary difference in the study done by Dr Knorr was the use of empirical data collection, including ice samples from Antarctica as historical CO2 markers rather than computer simulated models which can have highly varying degrees of accuracy depending on the programming of the model parameters. This author will draw no conclusions except to state that the use of computer generated models appears to be only as good as the data used to program the software. The use of empirical data would seem to be of much greater usefulness in trying to develop programs and restrictive patterns of energy use which will be in effect for many decades. Dr Knorr's study was published online in Geophysical Research Letters The paper: Is the airborne fraction of anthropogenic CO2 emissions increasing? by Wolfgang Knorr. Geophysical Research Letters, VOL. 36, L21710, doi:10.1029/2009GL040613, 2009.