The Environmentally
Balanced Solution

How to continue the use of fossil fuels into the 21st century, without destroying the environment and becoming the focal point of environmental pressure groups.

   It has been a hot dry summer in Fukuoka, in the Philippines the rainy season was two months early, Europe has been whipped by typhoons, the American Mid-west is experiencing a drought and unseasonably heavy rains have fallen in Southern Africa.

  The global weather pattern is changing.

   The consequences of this are frightening, imagine a Fukuoka with summer temperatures of 40°C or the Gobi Desert encircling Beijing.

   Scientists attribute these changes to Global Warming which is occurring because of the Greenhouse Effect. This effect is caused by the build up of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere as a direct result of deforestation and the combustion of fossil fuels.

   Newspapers daily display articles of our battered environment and the dangers of global warming. Something has to be done, we cannot survive on this planet unless we do. The responsibility lies with all of us to do as much as we can as quickly as possible.

   It is time to approach the environment on a commercial scale. IDEX has the resources to replant a rainforest. This will offset the effect of the carbon dioxide that is produced when the oil they sell is burnt. It will also give them a favorable corporate image that will put them beyond criticism from environmentalists.

 Invest in the environment,
                    .......... it' s our only future.

   This report investigates the relevant facts and figures that such a reforestation program would entail.

CARBON

FUTURE TRENDS
   Despite research efforts into alternative forms of energy, fossil fuels will remain our major source of energy for years to come. Some estimates put the increased use of fossil fuels as high as 2% per annum.

SINKS
   Carbon dioxide is sequestered from the air during photosynthesis. One of the largest sequesters are trees. At present one fifth of the world or 2,6 billion hectares is covered by trees. These forests contain some 437 billion tons of carbon, referred to as it's bio mass. The sequestration ability of trees varies greatly between species. Trees sequester anything between 5 and 30 t/ha per annum. This rate drops off as forests reach maturity, which can happen after anything between 30 and 100 years.

FUTURE TRENDS
   The growing demand for more agricultural land and the need for lumber to support the timber and paper industry has resulted in large scale deforestation. Predictions are that this trend will level off by the year 2020 by which time only one seventh or 1,8 billion hectares of the earth will be forested. Thus greatly reducing the carbon dioxide sequestering ability of the world's forests.

BALANCE
    In order to halt global warming it is necessary to stabilize the carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere. This can be achieved by reducing the production and/or increasing the sequestration of carbon dioxide.

  As carbon dioxide is the major contributor to global warming, any environmental program must first address this issue. In order to successfully tackle the problem, it is essential to understand the basic carbon cycle.

   The major producers of carbon dioxide are plant, animal and microbe respiration and natural release from the ocean surface. This is, however, balanced by carbon dioxide dissolving in the ocean and sequestration by ecosystems. Of more concern is the carbon dioxide produced by our modem society.

CARBON CYCLE
     Large quantities of carbon are stored in the ground as fossil fuels, such as oil, coal and natural gas. The combustion of these fuels with oxygen releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. This is then broken down in plants by the process of photosynthesis. The oxygen is released into the atmosphere and the carbon is absorbed by the plants as they grow. Millions of years after the plant dies, this carbon is again transformed into coal under the ground.



SOURCES
    Man made carbon dioxide is primarily produced in the combustion of wood and fossil fuels. Fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas account for 68% of this emission or some 5,5 billion tons of carbon per annum.
    On average oil accounts for about 40% of the total fossil fuel burnt and is thus responsible for about 25% of the man made emission of carbon dioxide. Gasoline and diesel is composed of approximately 85% carbon and has a density of 8OO kg/m³ Thus the quantity of carbon in one liter of fuel is:

   To reduce the output of carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels it is necessary to reduce the quantity of energy used. This would have far reaching economic con- sequences that the world is not ready to deal with. Solar and wind energy could be utilized to make up for such a reduction. However, economical methods of producing large quantities of energy by these methods are not presently available and it will be a number of years before these techniques can compete with fossil fuels

    To increase the sequestration of carbon dioxide it is necessary to undertake large reforestation programs. Although there are substantial costs involved in doing this, it would if anything promote economic growth. Further, as suitable reforestation areas are in underdeveloped countries, such a project would assist them in their foreign debt payments and would also ease economic pressure on them to carry out further deforestation.

OPTIONS

   Of the options above the second one is obviously the most attractive method of stabilizing atmospheric carbon dioxide. Further, it would help to replace some of the valuable forests that have been destroyed over the centuries.

IMPLEMENTATION

   Reforestation projects entail three main efforts; land purchase, planting and maintenance. The price of land varies greatly from area to area, but it is possible to purchase large parcels of suitable land for between ¥70 000 and ¥350 000 per hectare or alternatively a hectare can be leased for between ¥2 000 and ¥12 000 per annum. The cost of preparing the land and replanting it depends on the type of trees. Estimated costs are between ¥100 000 and ¥250 000 per hectare. Maintenance costs depend greatly on the suitability of the area and climate for the selected tree. However if an area is chosen where the selected type of forest is indigenous, maintenance costs are negligible.

RAINFORESTS

Tropical rainforests provide the highest rate of carbon dioxide sequestration and are thus the most desirable carbon sink. It is advantageous that a replanted forest be in it's natural environment as this would alleviate the need for irrigation and fertilization. Thus areas of rainforest that have been logged or deforested are of particular interest. These areas can be found in the Amazon and Congo Basins, in Central America and in South East Asia.

Tropical rainforests of the world

   It is also advantageous to use an area of land which has a portion of existing rainforest so that plant and animal species may be transplanted and the diversity of fauna and flora found in a rainforest maintained.

COSTS

    The costs involved in making a rainforest and it's sequestration ability are estimated below.

REFORESTATION

   At present forest replanting programs are underway in many countries to support the lumber industry. However, it is only recently and on a small scale that replanting for environmental reasons is being carried out.

SEQUESTRATION

    A wide variety of trees are available for the sequestration of carbon dioxide, for example the Sycamore (found on temperate plains) can sequester 7.5 tons of carbon per hectare, whilst the leucaena (found in tropical areas) can sequester 28.3 t/ha. Both of these types of forests mature in about 50 years.
     The sequestration ability of forest tends to drop off as the forest matures. At this point it would be necessary to selectively log some of the trees and to bury them in the ground or the ocean. However, in 50 years sources of energy are likely to have change and hence this decision is best left to 2040.

PROPOSAL

BALANCE

    This decade will see ever increasing attention focused on the environment As the general public becomes more aware of the effect and mechanism of global warming, the suppliers and users of fossil fuels will come under increasing pressure from environmental groups and legislation. It would thus be expedient for IDEX to enter the 21st century with an environmentally balanced and active corporate image. In order to do this it is necessary to offset the carbon dioxide produced by IDEX fuel.

We propose that:

• IDEX initiates a program to purchase and re-plant a sufficient area of rainforest to sequester the carbon dioxide that is produced from IDEX fuel.
  
• IDEX draw up a policy specifying that this rain- forest is to be returned to its natural condition and that it will not be logged or used for any other commercial purpose, except for nature orientated tourism.
  
• IDEX uses this project to promote it's corporate image and sales of oil by involving it's individual customers in the spirit of recreating nature.
  

• IDEX recovers the cost of this program on a per liter basis.

LAND

   Suitable sites can be found to replant the required area of rainforest and it is suggested that 4 sites be used, one each in Africa, South America, South East Asia and Australia.
    The land chosen will have either been cleared for agriculture and grazing or recently logged. This land can be bought or leased from private owners or governments. It is further suggested that areas with some existing rain- forests be chosen. This will give a base of plant and animal species to work from. Further, it would provide excellent advertising opportunities in showing the contrast between rainforests and cleared land.

REPLANTING

    Expertise in this field is readily available. It is envisaged that a research team would be set up who would advise on replanting methods and essential species in order that a balanced ecosystem can be created.
    Suitable reforestation areas have readily available pools of cheap labor. It is suggested that these are used extensively as it offers alternative employment to people whose only other income is from logging operations.