Are you saying that lumber doesn't lock carbon down in its various molecular structures? I'd find that kinda hard to believe.
A quick Google turned this up: https://www.paperonweb.com/A1110.htm
So, we can say roughly about 1.7kg of CO2 per kg of lumber on average.
Page 2 of this report (https://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/fplrp...lrp615.pdf) states...
And to further clarify on the following page...
It also, quite handily, provides the volume-to-weight conversion factors:
Softwood 1,000 board feet = 0.974 Short Tons
Hardwood 1,000 board feet = 1.680 Short Tons
One Short Ton = 907.185 kg
Softwood lumber production was 32,162,974,000 kg in 2002.
Hardwood lumber production was 17,526,814,000 kg in 2002.
Using the above figure of 1.7 kg of CO2 per kg of lumber, that gives us 54,709,899,800 kg, or about 54.7 million metric tons, or about 54,710 kilotons, of sequestered CO2.
In the United States alone.
Wikipedia states that the USA produced 5,172,336 kt of CO2 from fossil fuel emissions in 2015. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_co..._emissions)
Unfortunately, I'm a bit pressed for time right now so I have no idea where to find a proper inventory of natural CO2 sources, so if someone else can work that out...
Typically, a forestry company will let a crop go for about 20 years before harvesting, so if we can cut down on CO2 emissions ASAP, stick to using wood as much as possible in construction, then we MIGHT have a shot at this - at least in staving off the worse until we can figure out a more permanent solution.
A quick Google turned this up: https://www.paperonweb.com/A1110.htm
So, we can say roughly about 1.7kg of CO2 per kg of lumber on average.
Page 2 of this report (https://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/fplrp...lrp615.pdf) states...
Quote:An estimated 48.0 billion board feet (× 10^9 bf) of lumber (softwoods plus hardwoods) was produced in the United States in 2002 (Table 28). This is consistent with near record high production levels since 1999, but about 1.5 × 10^9 bf below the record high production of 49.5 × 109 bf in 1999 (Table 28, Fig. 4).
And to further clarify on the following page...
Quote:Softwood lumber production in 2002 was about 36.4 ×10^9 bf (Table 28, Fig. 4), 76% of total lumber production. Hardwood lumber production was about 11.5 ×10^9 bf.
It also, quite handily, provides the volume-to-weight conversion factors:
Softwood 1,000 board feet = 0.974 Short Tons
Hardwood 1,000 board feet = 1.680 Short Tons
One Short Ton = 907.185 kg
Softwood lumber production was 32,162,974,000 kg in 2002.
Hardwood lumber production was 17,526,814,000 kg in 2002.
Using the above figure of 1.7 kg of CO2 per kg of lumber, that gives us 54,709,899,800 kg, or about 54.7 million metric tons, or about 54,710 kilotons, of sequestered CO2.
In the United States alone.
Wikipedia states that the USA produced 5,172,336 kt of CO2 from fossil fuel emissions in 2015. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_co..._emissions)
Unfortunately, I'm a bit pressed for time right now so I have no idea where to find a proper inventory of natural CO2 sources, so if someone else can work that out...
Typically, a forestry company will let a crop go for about 20 years before harvesting, so if we can cut down on CO2 emissions ASAP, stick to using wood as much as possible in construction, then we MIGHT have a shot at this - at least in staving off the worse until we can figure out a more permanent solution.