Japan's CO2 emissions see first rise in three years

Industrial output going down, domestic consumption going down and temp also down in Japan now...don't understand why CO2 is rising? it's likely to go up in coming months...my guess,

Japan deserves an exemption for the time being.

What burns me is that my use of electricity has gone up because I now avoid Japanese foods due to the nuke disaster. I bought a freezer so that I can eat more foreign foods.

With everyone saving electricity, it seems strange that CO2 is rising, but I'm guessing it's because more fossil-fuel based power plants are being relied on. Not sure, but seems likely. I work at a company that changed its work schedule during the summer months to save electricity. Unfortunately it ended up actually using a lot more electricity because parts of the office were basically open 7 days a week instead of 5. I say give Masayoshi Son, president Softbank, a chance to build his mega-solar plants. Can't hurt.

So much for meeting their Kyoto targets.

Prof. David Keith will capture CO2 from the atmosphere soon, so we won't have anything to worry about anymore.

Australia put a tax on Co2, but many posts focus on the tax- reduce Co2 reduce the Tax..."incentive". TEPCO again! No1 in a competition of evil.Yes yes yes we could say it's a natural warming, but humans tip natures scales. We try and it works..yatta. We try and it fails, knee deep in it anyway. That is the argument isn't it? It's nature not us. So taxing and reducing outputs may well be of benefit...or do nothing and nature will take it's course anyway. I really can't understand the logic of the anti reduction lobby. Is trying a theory so abhorrent (it's only our kids and grandkids future) is big business so much more special? Seems science and capital cash are contradictory. Can you use money,stocks and shares bobbing in the water? I do not like broccoli but I know it's healthy!

Zichi, Why didn't America sign the agreement? What did they say about it? Do you know?

@zichi.. what happens when the wind doesn't blow?.. or blows only a little?.... and when the wind is too strong, the windmills also have to be shut down due to damaging the mills... if people think windmills will take the place of 9 reactors... they are in dreamland

@zichi.... and since you mentioned Texas... they ran out of electricity recently and had to buy electricity from Mexico... windmills contribute only a tiny tiny amount of realistic power.. and 100 times the cost.

To be fair Japan was the forerunner of energy conservation before Kyoto protocol was introduced. So the potential for reducing further was lower then many nation that started after the introduction of the protocol.

What can one expect when places like Osaka to Kobe are covered with concrete and factories. What is under the concrete? THE BEST SOIL IN THE WORLD TO GROW FOOD. Disneyland in California was an orange grove (trees) and now "paved paradise."

I am with zichi on this one.

As we have discussed in some previous threads. Japan emits about half the CO2 / per capita compared to the U.S and has the highest GNP per ton of CO2 released. While targeting the reduction of CO2 is important, in these times of difficulties Japan should be allowed (allow it self) slight increase in CO2 release.

Secondly I do agree with zichi on that CO2 scrubbing should be done to largest possible extent for large producers such as TEPCO and Nippon Steel. Although I'm not quite sure what your point is about the scrubbers on sky scrapers. I would think scrubbing CO2 close to the production source would be more effective than trying to scrub from the atmosphere (And trees and plants already have this vector covered quite well).

Everybody is talking about CO2, but lets not forget that methane is 10 times more efficient as a green house gas, so maybe we should also be thinking about ways to reduce methane release.

Why does this article show a picture of STEAM rising from a cooling tower?

I don't know about about anyone else but seeing as how CO2 is emitted as a gas, I have great trouble in trying to visualise 1.12 billion TONS of the stuff. I mean, how do they know this? How is this number calculated?

Harry_GattoNov. 19, 2011 - 04:22PM JST

It's purely hypothetical but since you know the atomic value of carbon and other elements, know the amount of how much carbon is within every material used as fuel and the amount of each fuel used you be able to calculate the amount of carbon emitted as carbon dioxide.

SamuraiBlue: Thank you for the explanation, all is now clear, burn x tons of oil and x tons of coal and you can calculate the amount of CO2 produced.

I still can't visualise what one ton of gas looks like let alone 1.12 billion tons though.

This is good news from Japan. More CO2 gases is what the world needs, not less. I am glad that Japans levels have gone up. CO2 gas is necessary for the survival of the Planet. According to the "anthropogenic global warming" religion, CO2 gas is evil. The opposite is the case. There is no clear and absolute "consensus" among the worlds scientists that mankind is responsible for climate change. Climate change is a natural phenomenon. It has been happening for many thousands of years, long before the increase in population and long before the Industrial Revolution. So-called Climate Change "experts" have been spinning us untruths, based upon false data taken mostly from the past 150 years. Basic science teaches that before advancing any theory, or claiming that it is fact, you have to base your research on data taken over long time periods. Many of these climate change scientists, motivated by greed and a desire to enhance their own particular political dogma, rather choose to base their assumptions and their politico-religious ideas on flawed and sometimes devious research.

They need to be ignored, and taxation based on this false religion needs to be resisted to the utmost. Japan should be commended, not condemned, for the increase of CO2 gases.

And there is no such thing as evolution, God made it all 5,000 years ago. Oh on the 8th day he created lobbyists to show us the path.

zabutonsenbei, Son can't even deliver a consistently connective CELLULAR access grid, which is his main business.

Even in Tokyo there are places reception or 3Gs pops out... I've been in countless situations where friends with AU tried to phone or e-mail me (the old fashion way of bumping) and they had reception and I didn't... never the other way around. The last thing Japan needs to do is put its energy needs in Son's hands.

If you ask people at SOFTBANK shops why this is a problem they say, "We're newer than KDDI, but please be patient." Right... and SOFTBANK is newer than TEPCO... I can only imagine. And their contracts are anything but simple. Try to get a straight answer on anything. No, please...

According to Masao Takano of Nagoya University, Japan might be able to go without nuke energy at all even without energy conservation. Here is his calculation.

[TEPCO area]

水力hydro 2,180,000kw

揚水pumped hydro 6,810,000kw

卸電力事業者揚水Wholesale Electricity Utility pumped hydro 2,530,000kw

稼働原子力nuke 0kw

火力thermal 38,190,000kw

卸電気事業者火力Whole Electricity Utility thermal 5,450,000kw

緊急設備電源emergency power supply system(thermal) 2,000,000kw

合計 total 62,070,000kw

Used electricity at peak time in 2010 60,000,000kw

<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=696D_vsgmyc>

realist, I'm interested in this comment of yours:

"So-called Climate Change "experts" have been spinning us untruths, based upon false data taken mostly from the past 150 years. Basic science teaches that before advancing any theory, or claiming that it is fact, you have to base your research on data taken over long time periods. Many of these climate change scientists, motivated by greed and a desire to enhance their own particular political dogma"

Well, well! There's no one worse that the coal mines for wanting to continue in business - to sell coal! And what about the petrochemical companies, suppressing electric and hybrid motor vehicle developments because they don't ant to lose out on their petrochemical products.

But wait for the day - maybe quite a while ahead - when those companies will be using solar concentrating facilities and high temperature reactors, such as the pebble bed modular reactor, to produce hydrogen energy-economically for the so-called "hydrogen economy", ie for motor vehicles propelled either directly by hydrogen in a modified combustion engine, or using hydrogen cells. It will come, and put your thoughts somewhat out of joint.

Sorry, zichi, I should have put more explanation. The figures I listed is the area that TEPCO servicing (Kanto region, Yamanashi Prefecture, and Shizuoka Prefecture). And all those numbers are Prof. Takano's calculation how much this area(Kanto, Yamanashi, Shizuoka) can generate at maximum capacity.

Hehehehe that's fine I guess since Japan tried sooo hard to control their CO2 emissions compared to the 2 countries on the top list for CO2 emissions doesn't even bother to lessen theirs and keep on destroying mother earth. Let Japan join them and let's all share and contribute to our dooms day.

Pro. Takano explains in detail on this website. I found it was very interesting.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=696D_vsgmyc

(the website I put above doesn't work... sorry...)

Z....Plants grow oxygen! If you don't know that, there is no hope. Cover the crop producing areas in Osaka to Kobe, and you produce nothing to eat and nothing to breath. Oh well, protesters can always take the shinkansen and other ELECTRICALLY driven transportation devises to the event. Nuclear energy is the only solution.

Blair HerronNov. 19, 2011 - 09:44PM JST

According to Masao Takano of Nagoya University, Japan might be able to go without nuke energy at all even without energy conservation. Here is his calculation.

[TEPCO area]

水力hydro 2,180,000kw

Hope this doesn't get knocked out like it did up here in Tohoku during the summer storms.

揚水pumped hydro 6,810,000kw

卸電力事業者揚水Wholesale Electricity Utility pumped hydro 2,530,000kw

Pumped hydro is not power production, it's power storage.

稼働原子力nuke 0kw

火力thermal 38,190,000kw

卸電気事業者火力Whole Electricity Utility thermal 5,450,000kw

緊急設備電源emergency power supply system(thermal) 2,000,000kw

At what cost?

合計 total 62,070,000kw

minus 9,340,000kw storage

= 52,730,000kw

Used electricity at peak time in 2010 60,000,000kw

Oh dear, missing that figure by 7,000,000kw.

zichi Nov. 20, 2011 - 08:55AM JST

That's a very promising figure and small increase considering more than 75% of nuclear reactors are shut down and gas and coal increase to provide additional power.

Coal pollutes the environment with heavy metals such as arsenic and mercury, causing congential defects. The air pollution causes lung disease, heart attacks and asthma. They also release uranium and thorium into the environment.