Carbon dioxide levels

Among the lowest annual emission rates of carbon dioxide in parts per million are these seven out of 45 years:

1960 • 1964 • 1970-1971 • 1774 • 1982 • 1992 • 1999

Graphic 1.

Table 1.

ENSO is the El Nino, Southern Ocean oscillation between El Nino or warm wet years in the Americas and La Nina or colder, drier years in the Americas, based on the heat capacity of the Indian Ocean and the failures of the East Indian monsoons that have a periodic frequency.

The annual average increase in carbon in the atmosphere over twenty years (1985-2005) is 1.70 while the forty-five year average increase is 1.39 from 1959-2005.

What factors account for the decline in those years seven or eight years, or five out of forty-five years?

compare

The Economy.

Recessions in the US: 1948-49 to 2001-02

The years of economic downturns were:

1957-58 for eight months

1960- 61 for eleven months

1969-70 for twelve months

1973-75 for seventeen months

1980 for seven months

1981-82 for sixteen months

1990-1991 for nine months

2001 for eight months

National Bureau of Economic Research

Graphic 2: recession years and climate variability

...............................◊..◊......◊..........◊◊...◊◊◊.........◊◊................◊.....................◊...........................

There were 88 months of recession (◊ above) in 44 years since 1957 with an average of 11 months duration and sixteen percent of those 43 years were recession periods based on the months during which recessions happened.

Factors:

If recessions affect production of carbon emitting industrial processes, then recessions may account for all but three (1964, 1971, 1999) of the low emission years from 1960-2005.

But do these times of prosperity coincide with high emission rates?

Deforestation rates and vulcanism are also important variables to consider.

Eco-Justice classes

Numeracy

US Census Bureau (decennial census data)

Population pyramids - dynamic changes

We live within, not on; entwined with the biological wealth of -- the world.