Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
ded complication that the oceans circulate, so whatever carbon dioxide is dumped, some
of it will eventually return. Moreover, scientists are very uncertain about the environment-
al effects on the ocean ecosystems.
The major problem with all of these methods of storage is safety. Carbon dioxide is a very
dangerous gas because it is heavier than air and can cause suffocation. An important ex-
ample of this was in 1986, when a tremendous explosion of carbon dioxide from Lake
Nyos, in the west of Cameroon, killed more than 1,700 people and livestock up to 25 km
away. Though similar disasters had previously occurred, never had so many people and
animals been asphyxiated on such a scale in a single brief event. What scientists now be-
lieve happened was that dissolved carbon dioxide from the nearby volcano seeped from
springs beneath the lake and was trapped in deep water by the weight of water above. In
1986, there was an avalanche that mixed up the lake waters, resulting in an explosive
overturn of the whole lake, and all the trapped carbon dioxide was released in one go.
However, at this very moment huge amounts of mined ancient carbon dioxide is pumped
around the USA to enhance oil recovery. There are no reports of any major incidents and
engineers working on these pipelines feel they are much safer than on the gas and oil
pipelines, which run across most major cities.
