There are four Sources of Greenhouse Gases:-

• Carbon Dioxide:- mainly produced by the combustion of coal, oil and gas from fossil fuels.  Also results from deforestation and land clearance, and from peat burning in the tropics.  Fossil fuels  are often called the buried sunshine, because, they are in essence, the energy that has been captured from the sun by photosynthesis in ancient plants.  By using fossil fuel, humans are getting an effective energy subsidy from the past.  Before the discovery of coal, oil and gas, humans – like other animals and plants – had to live only from the energy provided directly from the sun.  We can live very comfortably harnessing the power of the sun, and as the fossil fuels dry up, we will need to.

• Methane:- produced in places where oxygen-free decomposition occurs, such as in rice paddies and landfill sites.  Can also be released by leaky pipelines and burping cows.  Yes, our dependency on red meat is going to be one of the contributing factors to our downfall.  We farm a massive quantity of cows in order to eat their meat.  Cows eat a lot of food and produce amazing amounts of methane through burping and farting.  If we cut back on red meat, there would be a lot less burping and less methane.

• Nitous oxides:- emitted from burning fossil fuels – in car exhausts, for example – and from agricultural fertilizers breakding down in the soil.  Nothing more needs to be said about this one.

• HFCs and other industrial gases:- as it says, these are produced by industrial processes, HFCs were introduced to replace CFCs, which are now banned to protect the ozone layer.  They are used in refrigerants, in aerosols and foam-blowing.  SF6 is used in high voltage electrical switches, but also in that squishy bit of some training shoes and inside tennis balls.  Some of these gases are not really that important in the larger scheme of things, but each contribute to the problem.  If each of us contributed to the solution, then we can have a longer, happier and healthier future.

Information Gathered from The Carbon Counter (published by collins gem)