Figure 1. CO2 Concentrations by Year. [1]
From Figure 1 Mckay shows that the carbon dioxide concentration remained relatively stable until 1769. This was the year that the steam engine was invented. This was when fossil fuels began to be burnt for energy and true atmospheric pollution began. Many people argue if this is just a correlation or if it is an actual causal relationship. From this data it is easy to see that it is a causal relationship. This means that one actually causes the other. In this case it is the burning fossil fuels causes higher CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere. These numbers are a bit astonishing. Why have we lived the way we have knowing that we were doing this to the atmosphere?
[1] Mckay Book
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