--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Adding carbon dioxide, or any other…" description: "\"“Adding carbon dioxide, or any other greenhouse gas, to the atmosphere by, say, burning fossil fuels or leveling forests is, in the language of climate..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9c/elizabeth-kolbert-7570_carbon-dioxide_adding-carbon-dioxide-or-any-other-green_1495155.jpg" --- # Adding carbon dioxide, or any other greenhouse gas, to the… ![“Adding carbon dioxide, or any other greenhouse gas, to the atmosphere by, say, burning fossil fuels or leveling forests is, in the language of climate science, an anthropogenic forcing. Since preindustrial times, the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere has risen by roughly a third, from 280 to…” quote by Elizabeth Kolbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9c/elizabeth-kolbert-7570_carbon-dioxide_adding-carbon-dioxide-or-any-other-green_1495155.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9c/elizabeth-kolbert-7570_carbon-dioxide_adding-carbon-dioxide-or-any-other-green_1495155.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9c/elizabeth-kolbert-7570_carbon-dioxide_adding-carbon-dioxide-or-any-other-green_1495155.jpg) > ““Adding carbon dioxide, or any other greenhouse gas, to the atmosphere by, say, burning fossil fuels or leveling forests is, in the language of climate science, an anthropogenic forcing. Since preindustrial times, the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere has risen by roughly a third, from 280 to 378 parts per million. During the same period, the concentration of methane has more than doubled, from .78 to 1.76 parts per million. Scientists measure forcings in terms of watts per square meter, or w/m2, by which they mean that a certain number of watts have been added (or, in the case of a negative forcing, like aerosols, subtracted) for every single square meter of the earth’s surface. The size of the greenhouse forcing is estimated, at this point, to be 2.5 w/m2. A miniature Christmas light gives off about four tenths of a watt of energy, mostly in the form of heat, so that, in effect (as Sophie supposedly explained to Connor), we have covered the earth with tiny bulbs, six for every square meter. These bulbs are burning twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, year in and year out. If greenhouse gases were held constant at today’s levels, it is estimated that it would take several decades for the full impact of the forcing that is already in place to be felt. This is because raising the earth’s temperature involves not only warming the air and the surface of the land but also melting sea ice, liquefying glaciers, and, most significant, heating the oceans, all processes that require tremendous amounts of energy. (Imagine trying to thaw a gallon of ice cream or warm a pot of water using an Easy-Bake oven.) The delay that is built into the system is, in a certain sense, fortunate. It enables us, with the help of climate models, to foresee what is coming and therefore to prepare for it. But in another sense it is clearly disastrous, because it allows us to keep adding CO2 to the atmosphere while fobbing the impacts off on our children and grandchildren.”” [Elizabeth Kolbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human activities release greenhouse gases, creating a measurable warming force that will manifest over decades, giving both warning and risk of delayed damage. **In simple terms:** Human actions warm the planet, effects will appear later. Key Takeaway Act now to reduce emissions. Themes climate change anthropogenic forcing delayed impact intergenerational responsibility Mood concerned urgent reflective Type scientific policy educational When to use this quote - policy making - education - personal lifestyle changes - infrastructure planning Key Concepts greenhouse effect climate modeling energy balance thermal inertia Questions to Reflect On - What policies can accelerate emission cuts? - How can individuals influence systemic change? A Different Perspective Mitigation requires immediate action despite delayed visible effects. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Carbon dioxide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/carbon-dioxide/) [Climate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/climate/) [Fossil fuel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fossil-fuel/) [Greenhouse gases](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/greenhouse-gases/) [Ice cream](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ice-cream/) [Seven days](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seven-days/) ## Related quotes > [“The size of the greenhouse forcing is estimated, at this point, to be 2.5 w/m2. A miniature Christmas light gives off about four tenths…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/the-size-of-the-greenhouse-forcing-is-estimated-at-this-point-to-be-2/) [Elizabeth Kolbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/) > [Adding CO2 to the air is like throwing another blanket on the bed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/adding-co2-to-the-air-is-like-throwing-another-blanket-on-the-bed/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [We have climate change caused by greenhouse gas emissions, mostly from human power and transportation infrastructure. At the same time, we have 2 billion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramez-naam/we-have-climate-change-caused-by-greenhouse-gas-emissions-mostly-from/) [Ramez Naam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramez-naam/) > [I am troubled by the lack of common sense regarding carbon dioxide emissions. Our greatest greenhouse gas is water. Atmospheric spectroscopy reveals why water…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-myers/i-am-troubled-by-the-lack-of-common-sense-regarding-carbon-dioxide/) Michael Myers > [Al Gore likes to say that mankind puts 70 million tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere every day. What he probably doesn't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-spencer/al-gore-likes-to-say-that-mankind-puts-70-million-tons-of-carbon/) [Roy Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-spencer/) > [I think the whole human-induced greenhouse gas thing is a red herring... . I see climate change as due to the ocean circulation pattern.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-m-gray/i-think-the-whole-human-induced-greenhouse-gas-thing-is-a-red-herring/) William M. Gray > [Recent warming coincides with rapid growth of human-made greenhouse gases. The observed rapid warming gives urgency to discussions about how to slow greenhouse gas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/recent-warming-coincides-with-rapid-growth-of-human-made-greenhouse/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [India was a late comer to industrialization, and as such, we have contributed very little to the accumulation of greenhouse gas emissions that cause…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manmohan-singh/india-was-a-late-comer-to-industrialization-and-as-such-we-have/) [Manmohan Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manmohan-singh/) > [It is a simple fact of life on earth that there is going to be no successful mitigation of the climate change problem without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-garnaut/it-is-a-simple-fact-of-life-on-earth-that-there-is-going-to-be-no/) [Ross Garnaut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-garnaut/) > ['Scientific' computer simulations predict global warming based on increased greenhouse gas emissions over time. However, without water's contribution taken into account they omit the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-myers/scientific-computer-simulations-predict-global-warming-based-on/) Michael Myers > [We can debate this or that aspect of climate change, but the reality is that most people now accept our climate is indeed subject…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/we-can-debate-this-or-that-aspect-of-climate-change-but-the-reality/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) > [You have to be able to generate usable energy without greenhouse gas emissions and you have to be able to do it cheaply if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramez-naam/you-have-to-be-able-to-generate-usable-energy-without-greenhouse-gas/) [Ramez Naam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramez-naam/) > [I think we need to address greenhouse gas emissions. But I try to get involved in issues where I see a legislative result... So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mccain/i-think-we-need-to-address-greenhouse-gas-emissions-but-i-try-to-get/) [John McCain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mccain/) > [ We will pay for this \[climate change\] one way or another. We will pay to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions today and we'll have to take… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-zinni/we-will-pay-for-this-climate-change-one-way-or-another-we-will-pay-to/) [Anthony Zinni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-zinni/) > [It is common sense that when women are able to plan their pregnancies, populations grow more slowly and as a result so do greenhouse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kavita-ramdas/it-is-common-sense-that-when-women-are-able-to-plan-their-pregnancies/) [Kavita Ramdas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kavita-ramdas/) ## More by Elizabeth Kolbert > [“The size of the greenhouse forcing is estimated, at this point, to be 2.5 w/m2. A miniature Christmas light gives off about four tenths…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/the-size-of-the-greenhouse-forcing-is-estimated-at-this-point-to-be-2/) [Elizabeth Kolbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/) > [You've got to do everything, everything's got to be pointing in the same direction and you've got to really turn this whole economic engine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/you-ve-got-to-do-everything-everything-s-got-to-be-pointing-in-the/) [Elizabeth Kolbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/) > [Well in the scientific there is virtually no debate over certain things. For example, that we are changing the world. Humans are changing the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/well-in-the-scientific-there-is-virtually-no-debate-over-certain/) [Elizabeth Kolbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/) > [Humans will eventually become extinct. People treat that as a radical thing to say. But the fossil record shows us that everything eventually becomes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/humans-will-eventually-become-extinct-people-treat-that-as-a-radical/) [Elizabeth Kolbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/) > [“A sign in the Hall of Biodiversity offers a quote from the Stanford ecologist Paul Ehrlich: IN PUSHING OTHER SPECIES TO EXTINCTION, HUMANITY IS…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/a-sign-in-the-hall-of-biodiversity-offers-a-quote-from-the-stanford/) [Elizabeth Kolbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/) > [We have all this Paleolithic art that suggests that our ancestors really venerated animals and that they depended on wild animals to survive -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/we-have-all-this-paleolithic-art-that-suggests-that-our-ancestors/) [Elizabeth Kolbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/) > [“Crutzen wrote up his idea in a short essay, “Geology of Mankind,” that ran in Nature. “It seems appropriate to assign the term ‘Anthropocene’…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/crutzen-wrote-up-his-idea-in-a-short-essay-geology-of-mankind-that/) [Elizabeth Kolbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/) > [“Modern humans arrived in Europe around forty thousand years ago, and again and again, the archaeological record shows, as soon as they made their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/modern-humans-arrived-in-europe-around-forty-thousand-years-ago-and/) [Elizabeth Kolbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/) > [It seems that the Neanderthal DNA that modern Europeans and Asians (and also Native Americans and basically all non-African people) are carrying around is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/it-seems-that-the-neanderthal-dna-that-modern-europeans-and-asians/) [Elizabeth Kolbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/) > [What are the Chinese doing, what are we doing, what are - so we need, both the developed world and the developing world, really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/what-are-the-chinese-doing-what-are-we-doing-what-are-so-we-need-both/) [Elizabeth Kolbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/) > [“As the effects of global warming become more and more difficult to ignore, will we react by finally fashioning a global response? Or will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/as-the-effects-of-global-warming-become-more-and-more-difficult-to/) [Elizabeth Kolbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/) > [As best as can be determined, the world is now warmer than it has been at any point in the last two millennia, and,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/as-best-as-can-be-determined-the-world-is-now-warmer-than-it-has-been/) [Elizabeth Kolbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/) > [I traveled really to amazing places. I went to the Great Barrier Reef, I went to the Amazon, I went to the Andes, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/i-traveled-really-to-amazing-places-i-went-to-the-great-barrier-reef/) [Elizabeth Kolbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/) > [“At the Biesbosch nature center, I met up with a water-ministry official named Eelke Turkstra. Turkstra runs a program called Ruimte voor de Rivier…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/at-the-biesbosch-nature-center-i-met-up-with-a-water-ministry/) [Elizabeth Kolbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/) > [“Darwin’s familiarity with human-caused extinction is also clear from On the Origin of Species. In one of the many passages in which he heaps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/darwin-s-familiarity-with-human-caused-extinction-is-also-clear-from/) [Elizabeth Kolbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/) [Explore all 90 Elizabeth Kolbert quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/) ## More Carbon dioxide quotes > [Washington bureaucrats have classified the very air we exhale as a pollutant and have gone unchallenged in this incredible assertion. The logical consequence is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-paul/washington-bureaucrats-have-classified-the-very-air-we-exhale-as-a/) [Ron Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-paul/) > [Breathing is give(carbon dioxide) and take(oxygen), such is life, find balance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-williams/breathing-is-give-carbon-dioxide-and-take-oxygen-such-is-life-find/) Marcel Williams > [We have to slow down the emissions of carbon dioxide and methane from coal burning, oil and eventually natural gas... And the best ways…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramez-naam/we-have-to-slow-down-the-emissions-of-carbon-dioxide-and-methane-from/) [Ramez Naam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramez-naam/) > [Whether carbon dioxide is quite the environmental villain that some people make it out to be is not yet proven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-abbott/whether-carbon-dioxide-is-quite-the-environmental-villain-that-some/) [Tony Abbott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-abbott/) > [As we pump greenhouse gases into our atmosphere, the ocean absorbs carbon dioxide, making the seawater acidic and hostile for shellfish and corals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-gardiner/as-we-pump-greenhouse-gases-into-our-atmosphere-the-ocean-absorbs/) [Barry Gardiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-gardiner/) > [ \[The doctrine of air\] I was led into in consequence of inhabiting a house adjoining to a public brewery, where I at first amused… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-priestley/the-doctrine-of-air-i-was-led-into-in-consequence-of-inhabiting-a/) [Joseph Priestley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-priestley/) > [“The discovery of an interaction among the four hemes made it obvious that they must be touching, but in science what is obvious is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-discovery-of-an-interaction-among-the-four-hemes-made-it-obvious/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The instrument Keeling built, the gas chromatograph, works by passing infrared (IR) light through a sample of air and measuring the amount of IR…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heidi-cullen/the-instrument-keeling-built-the-gas-chromatograph-works-by-passing/) [Heidi Cullen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heidi-cullen/) > [If food was no longer obliged to make intercontinental journeys, but stayed part of a system in which it can be consumed over short…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlo-petrini/if-food-was-no-longer-obliged-to-make-intercontinental-journeys-but/) [Carlo Petrini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlo-petrini/) > [I know that nuclear is better than fossil fuels when it comes to carbon dioxide, but nuclear energy is by no means clean. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-crow/i-know-that-nuclear-is-better-than-fossil-fuels-when-it-comes-to/) [Sheryl Crow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-crow/) > [Centuries-old habitats such as coral gardens are destroyed in an instant by bottom trawls, pulverized by weighted nets into barren plains. And global carbon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-danson/centuries-old-habitats-such-as-coral-gardens-are-destroyed-in-an/) [Ted Danson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-danson/) > [Now, we put out a lot of carbon dioxide every year, over 26 billion tons. For each American, it's about 20 tons. For people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/now-we-put-out-a-lot-of-carbon-dioxide-every-year-over-26-billion/) [Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/) > [Plate tectonics is not all havoc and destruction. The slow movement of continents and ocean floors recycles carbon dioxide dissolved in the oceans back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/plate-tectonics-is-not-all-havoc-and-destruction-the-slow-movement-of/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [Carbon dioxide pollution is transforming the chemistry of the ocean, rapidly making the water more acidic. In decades, rising ocean acidity may challenge life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigourney-weaver/carbon-dioxide-pollution-is-transforming-the-chemistry-of-the-ocean/) [Sigourney Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigourney-weaver/) > [It’s time to move the debate past the dogmatic view that carbon dioxide is evil and toward a world view that accepts the need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-bryce/it-s-time-to-move-the-debate-past-the-dogmatic-view-that-carbon/) [Robert Bryce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-bryce/) [Browse all 263 Carbon dioxide quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/carbon-dioxide/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Adding carbon dioxide, or any other greenhouse gas, to the atmosphere by, say, burning fossil fuels or leveling forests is, in the language of climate science, an anthropogenic forcing. Since preindustrial times, the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere has risen by roughly a third, from 280 to 378 parts per million. During the same period, the concentration of methane has more than doubled, from .78 to 1.76 parts per million. Scientists measure forcings in terms of watts per square meter, or w/m2, by which they mean that a certain number of watts have been added (or, in the case of a negative forcing, like aerosols, subtracted) for every single square meter of the earth’s surface. The size of the greenhouse forcing is estimated, at this point, to be 2.5 w/m2. A miniature Christmas light gives off about four tenths of a watt of energy, mostly in the form of heat, so that, in effect (as Sophie supposedly explained to Connor), we have covered the earth with tiny bulbs, six for every square meter. These bulbs are burning twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, year in and year out. If greenhouse gases were held constant at today’s levels, it is estimated that it would take several decades for the full impact of the forcing that is already in place to be felt. This is because raising the earth’s temperature involves not only warming the air and the surface of the land but also melting sea ice, liquefying glaciers, and, most significant, heating the oceans, all processes that require tremendous amounts of energy. (Imagine trying to thaw a gallon of ice cream or warm a pot of water using an Easy-Bake oven.) The delay that is built into the system is, in a certain sense, fortunate. It enables us, with the help of climate models, to foresee what is coming and therefore to prepare for it. But in another sense it is clearly disastrous, because it allows us to keep adding CO2 to the atmosphere while fobbing the impacts off on our children and grandchildren.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Elizabeth Kolbert" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/adding-carbon-dioxide-or-any-other-greenhouse-gas-to-the-atmosphere/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Carbon dioxide" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/adding-carbon-dioxide-or-any-other-greenhouse-gas-to-the-atmosphere/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9c/elizabeth-kolbert-7570_carbon-dioxide_adding-carbon-dioxide-or-any-other-green_1495155.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9c/elizabeth-kolbert-7570_carbon-dioxide_adding-carbon-dioxide-or-any-other-green_1495155.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9c/elizabeth-kolbert-7570_carbon-dioxide_adding-carbon-dioxide-or-any-other-green_1495155.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Adding carbon dioxide, or any other greenhouse gas, to the atmosphere by, say, burning fossil fuels or…” — Elizabeth Kolbert", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Elizabeth Kolbert", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Adding carbon dioxide, or any other...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/adding-carbon-dioxide-or-any-other-greenhouse-gas-to-the-atmosphere/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/adding-carbon-dioxide-or-any-other-greenhouse-gas-to-the-atmosphere/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```