Carbon sequestration: A bad idea that’s also unnecessary

The sequestration of carbon dioxide is an even worse idea than intermittent wind and solar energy. Wind and solar require reliable on-demand backup in order to achieve grid reliability, creating a terrible misallocation of resources. Nuclear, gas and coal plants are required to curtail output to accommodate harvesting of wind tax credits when the wind is blowing.

Since the Iowa Public Utility Commission cannot dictate how a utility generates its power but must permit utilities to have a fair rate of return on investments, the best way for a utility to increase profits is to use a sub optimum mix of energy sources to provide grid reliability. Economists refer to this as the Averch Johnson effect.

CO₂ sequestration is even worse. CO₂ is a beneficial trace gas that is increasing crop yields and making crops more drought resistant by reducing evapotranspiration.

In 2023 it was reported that CO₂ was greening China. Climate alarmists claimed that the greening wasn't due to CO₂, but rather to an ambitious tree planting program in China. Those must have been some really special trees since they were greening not just China, but also India. Even the Sahara desert has experienced greening. Climate alarmists now have to admit that CO₂ is greening the planet, but that’s still no benefit in their eyes. They claim not only that increased crop yields are making food is less nutritious, but that increased tree growth is making lumber is less dense and not as strong — even as Michael Mann and other climate scientists with their tree ring proxies maintain that enhanced tree growth is entirely due to global warming.

Nor is CO₂ causing more extreme weather. There is a slightly declining trend in severe (EF3 or higher) tornadoes. The overall increase in tornadoes is nearly all due to an increase in the reporting of weaker EF0 tornadoes since the adoption of Doppler radar. Also, the National Weather Service offers free weather spotter training annually and encourages the public to call in severe weather sightings. Damage caused by storms depends a lot on where they strike. Increasing damage costs are due largely to increased development and higher values of property at risk.

Because water vapor is also a greenhouse gas, sparse in the Polar Regions and abundant in the tropics, climate computer models and climate scientists both agree that CO₂ will have a greater effect in the Polar Regions than in the tropics. This should reduce the overall temperature gradient between the two regions which may result in less severe weather.

Fred Hubler of Cedar Rapids is a retired engineer who has been closely following and examining climate data for two decades