IndexFossil fuel burningLand use and land cover changeConsequences that occur when human actions interact with the carbon cycleAtmosphereOceanLandWorks citedCarbon is critical to supporting a wide range of Earth's functions. It is abundant in the atmosphere (air), biosphere (living and dead organisms), hydrosphere (oceans, rivers, and lakes), and lithosphere (suns and rocks). These act as storage areas or carbon sinks. Processes such as erosion, evaporation, photosynthesis, respiration and decomposition constantly move carbon between these reservoirs. Carbon enters, is stored in, and exits different spheres of the Earth through different methods and in different quantities. The carbon cycle is the term used to describe the ways in which carbon moves between each other. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essayThe flow of carbon is now strongly influenced by human activity. The most important human impact on the carbon cycle is the burning of fossil fuels, which releases carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere. Burning Fossil Fuels Under natural conditions the release of carbon from fossil fuels occurs slowly, as they are subducted into the mantle and CO2 is released through volcanic activity. However, humans are highly dependent on fossil fuels and extract them from the lithosphere in large quantities. Fossil fuels, which include oil, natural gas and coal, are used in nearly every aspect of the global economy. Cars are the most visible example, but in reality a greater amount of carbon dioxide is produced by coal and natural gas plants that produce electricity for both industrial and residential use. Industrial agriculture also runs on fossil fuel energy. All artificial fertilizers are synthesized by a process that burns fossil fuels, usually natural gas. Burning coal, oil, natural gas, and other fossil fuels removes carbon from them and emits it as CO2 into the atmosphere. Another important human impact lies in changes in the Earth's land cover, such as the deforestation of forests or the abandonment of agricultural areas, which can release or remove increased atmospheric CO2. Land use and changes in land coverLarge amounts of carbon are stored in living plants. Therefore, changes in land use, especially the clearing of forests (which are densely inhabited by plants and therefore contain a large amount of carbon), can affect the carbon cycle in two ways. First, clearing vegetation eliminates plants that would otherwise capture carbon from the atmosphere through photosynthesis, which is the process by which plants and some bacteria use energy from sunlight to build carbohydrates from carbon dioxide. carbonic. Second, as dense forests are replaced by crops/pastures/built environments, there is usually a net decrease in carbon storage, as smaller plants (and, worse yet, concrete) store much less carbon compared to large trees. Deforestation also allows much more soil to be eroded, and the carbon stored in the soil is quickly transported into rivers. While some areas have been set aside as nature reserves, many others are vulnerable to fires and clear-cutting for timber harvesting and clearing agricultural land. Consequences that occur when human actions interact withthe carbon cycle Due to the cyclical nature of In the carbon cycle, human-caused impacts can lead to a series of amplifications and feedbacks. Changes in the carbon cycle impact each reservoir. Atmosphere All this extra carbon has to go somewhere. So far, land plants and oceans have absorbed about 55% of the extra carbon put into the atmosphere by humans, while about 45% has remained in the atmosphere. Eventually, land and oceans will absorb most of the excess carbon dioxide, but as much as 20% could remain in the atmosphere for many thousands of years. The main concern about rising carbon dioxide levels stems from the fact that carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas. Carbon dioxide, methane, and halocarbons are greenhouse gases that absorb a wide range of energy, including infrared energy (heat) emitted by the Earth, and then re-emit it. The re-emitted energy travels in all directions, but some returns to Earth, where it heats the surface. This is known as the greenhouse effect. The United Nations International Panel on Climate Change believes that humans are disrupting the carbon cycle enough to dramatically change the global climate, with potentially enormous consequences for biodiversity, agriculture, climate and the overall health of every ecosystem in the world. planet. Carbon dioxide molecules provide the initial greenhouse heating needed to maintain water vapor concentrations. As carbon dioxide concentrations decrease, the Earth cools, some water vapor escapes from the atmosphere, and the greenhouse warming caused by water vapor decreases. Likewise, as carbon dioxide concentrations increase, air temperatures rise and more water vapor evaporates into the atmosphere, which amplifies greenhouse warming. Carbon dioxide is the gas that sets the temperature. Carbon dioxide controls the amount of water vapor in the atmosphere and therefore the magnitude of the greenhouse effect. At the same time that greenhouse gases are rising, the average global temperature has risen 0.8 degrees Celsius (1.4 degrees Fahrenheit) since 1880. Ocean About 30% of the carbon dioxide that people have put into the ocean atmosphere spread into the ocean through direct chemical exchange. The dissolution of carbon dioxide in the ocean creates carbonic acid, which increases the acidity of the water. Or rather, a slightly alkaline ocean becomes a little less alkaline. Since 1750, the ocean's surface pH has dropped by 0.1, a 30% change in acidity. Ocean acidification affects marine organisms in two ways. First, carbonic acid reacts with carbonate ions in water to form bicarbonate. However, those same carbonate ions are what shell-building animals like corals need to create calcium carbonate shells. With less carbonate available, animals must expend more energy building their shells. As a result, the shells end up being thinner and more fragile. Secondly, the more acidic the water, the better it dissolves calcium carbonate. In the long term, this reaction will allow the ocean to absorb excess carbon dioxide because more acidic water will dissolve more rock, release more carbonate ions, and increase the ocean's ability to absorb carbon dioxide. In the meantime, however, the more acidic water will dissolve the carbonate shells of marine organisms, making them pitted and weak. Warmer oceans – a product of the greenhouse effect – could also decrease the abundance of phytoplankton, which grows best in cool, nutrient-rich environments. rich waters. This could limit the ocean's ability to absorb carbon from the atmosphere.