The Depletion of Oxygen in the Atmosphere

Oxygen Depletion in the Atmosphere

We are facing a very serious problem as the Human Race. An extremely serious problem exists involving the declining amount of Oxygen in our atmosphere. I am surprised that this situation has not been in the headlines nationwide and around the world daily. I am submitting quotes with this article to substantiate the problem that I am about to explain. I am not a professional scientist, but I have done research in the area of atmospheric problems and genetics. I understand some scientists and some politicians either don't care or simply choose not to believe, but that doesn't mean the problem isn't real or doesn't exist.

There are two areas that concern me most; the first one is the easiest to understand and document so let me start by stating that I attended school between 1969 and 1970 at a private seminary. I was interested in Theology and later the Physical Sciences. I remember reading sometime in the mid seventies that the atmosphere was composed of 72 percent Nitrogen, 28 percent Oxygen and trace gases such as Argon.

I didn't think too much about it in the 70's because at that time I seemed to be breathing well, I was young and it didn't really interest me much because it wasn't my area of interest. I could never have imagined that 46 years later I would be worried about my children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren not having enough Oxygen to breathe possibly within my own lifetime.

Recently I read that the atmosphere was composed of 20.5 to 21 percent Oxygen.  I thought this has to be a mistake, but it's not. That is a 25 percent decrease in Oxygen between 1970s and now.

I did more research and discovered that it is estimated that prior to the Industrial Revolution the atmospheric Oxygen level was about 35 percent one hundred and sixty years ago.

Think about this for a moment. In approximately 1856, 160 years ago the Oxygen level in the atmosphere was estimated to be about 35% and in 1975 28%. That is a decrease of 20% Oxygen between 1856 and 1975 (119 years).  Now the atmospheric Oxygen level is between 20.5% and 21% globally and in many places lower than that. That is a decrease of 25% from approximately 1975 to the 2000s.

(1856 – 35%) to (1975 – 28%) to (2000's – 21%) or less in some areas

Scientists are warning that if the Oxygen level falls to 19.5 percent we will be in danger of not having enough Oxygen to function intelligently.   The difference between 21% to 19.5 % O2 is only a difference of 1.5 %.  It is even lower than 19.5% in major cities where there is more atmospheric pollution. “The conclusion of a 20-year study is that as carbon dioxide (produced primarily by burning fossil fuels) accumulates in the atmosphere, available Oxygen decreases.”  

 I will explain why in a moment.

It has recently come to my attention that NOAA has been doing studies that show the oceans of the world absorb 30% of the atmospheric CO2 as a result of burning fossil fuels. 
"The ocean absorbs about 30% of the CO2 that is released in the atmosphere, and as levels of atmospheric CO2 increase, so do the levels in the ocean"  The oceans become acidic and much of the ocean's creatures are adversely affected.       
https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/acidification.html



 “At these levels (19.5%) it is difficult for people to get sufficient oxygen to maintain bodily health: it takes a proper intake of oxygen to keep body cells, organs and the entire immune system, functioning at full efficiency.”

“At the Oxygen levels we have reached today cancers and other degenerative diseases are likely to develop.”

“The effects of long term Oxygen deprivation on the brain, called cerebral hypoxia, are known and sound reminiscent of the general rise of stupidity in the industrialized world.”

I recently purchased an O2 Analyzer to measure Oxygen levels in and around my area and have found them to be below 21%. The Analyzer calibrates at 20.9% and the O2 measured levels have been as low as 20.7% in some areas within a three hundred mile radius of Amarillo, Texas where I live which is at 3605 feet above sea level. In higher elevations, O2 is even lower.

“If the Oxygen level drops to 6 to 7 percent life can no longer be sustained”

Recently a news program reporting on climbers on Mt. Everest approaching the summit said the Oxygen level was at 9% and that climbers should not try to climb the summit without Oxygen.

I believe that within 25-30 years the Oxygen levels will have dropped another 25-30 percent and perhaps even more because of combined Global Warming and Climate Changing Patterns directly related to CO2 emissions. How is Global Warming and Climate Change Patterns affecting global Oxygen?  Let's start at the back and work forward. 

The Answer!    First of all, anybody who hasn't noticed or heard of Climate Changes globally from previous generations was either in a coma or on a deserted island. Why are the Climate Patterns changing you ask? Well, Climate Change has a lot to do with major Gulf Stream patterns that have changed dramatically from previous generations. Increased Global Warming is taking place at an alarming rate globally causing the fluctuations in the Gulf Stream patterns to dramatically change weather patterns over all continents of the earth. What is causing Global Warming worldwide that is different than in the past?  There is where we find the answer to our problem. Increased Global Warming from more than a hundred years ago is directly related to the use and burning of fossil fuels! 

How do I know that?   The answer sadly enough has to do with the depletion or the decrease of Oxygen worldwide available for us to breathe. Yes! You and me, your children, their children and so on. 

READ ON

  The Oxygen level could very easily drop to 14.5 to 15 percent globally within the next 25 to 30 years.

“Currently the Oxygen content of the Earth's atmosphere dips to 19 percent over impacted areas, and it is down to 15 to 17 percent over some major cities. At these levels, it is difficult for people to get sufficient Oxygen to maintain bodily health." 

“…oxygen levels in the world’s oceans have also been falling.”

Once again, “At 6 to 7 percent life can no longer be sustained.”

“The conclusion of the 20-year study is that, as carbon dioxide (produced primarily by burning fossil fuels) accumulates in the atmosphere, available Oxygen is decreasing.”

It is this writer's opinion that this situation cannot be reversed under the current circumstances.

The scenario is this, if we stopped using fossil fuels right now I believe the atmosphere would not normalize for at least one hundred years. Whether the oceans would revert back to healthy levels by then we can't be sure.  

Can we deal with Global Warming and Climate Change? Perhaps we can because of technology, but can we deal with insufficient Oxygen?

What's The Problem?

Here is the problem simply put:     The burning of fossil fuels releases CO2 (carbon dioxide gas) into the atmosphere which is trapped inside the atmosphere and is unable to escape into outer space.  
The daytime heating of the earth from the sun rises into the atmosphere and is unable to dissipate into outer space because of the carbon dioxide which can't escape. That holds the daytime heat in the atmosphere and over time it accumulates and increases. If there wasn't an excess of Carbon Dioxide Gas in the atmosphere the daytime heat would simply pass into outer space and the natural process of heating and cooling of the earth would continue as it had for millennia. The process of trees, plants and Phytoplankton attached to coral reefs in the oceans convert Carbon Dioxide into Oxygen naturally, but we have long since created; overloaded the atmosphere by releasing too much CO2 into the atmosphere by the burning of fossil fuels. It has been accumulating and growing over a relatively short period of time which brings us to the problem we have today. 

This is causing Global Warming which is causing Climate Changing patterns due to Gulf Stream fluctuations. The ice caps and glaciers are melting at an alarming rate and the seas are rising as well. Ice sheets as large as New Jersey have recently broken off from the Larson C ice shelf in the Antarctic and more are expected.

Oxygen Depletion: 

So don't we need carbon dioxide to make Oxygen?! Yes, but here's the problem: the oceans are heating up and the organism phytoplankton that makes up 50-80 percent of the earth's Oxygen is dying from excessive warm water.  The increase of ocean water temperatures is causing bleaching of the coral reefs resulting in the destruction of the phytoplankton that makes Oxygen. 

We can't undo the increased warming of the oceans that is killing the phytoplankton that makes most of the O2 (Oxygen) that we need to survive. 

   "NASA reports that in the north Pacific ocean oxygen-producing phytoplankton concentrations are 30% lower today, compared to the 1980s. This is a huge drop in just three decades.” 

Another quote from NASA: "The story at sea is much the same. NASA reports that in the north Pacific ocean oxygen-producing phytoplankton concentrations are 30% lower today, compared to the 1980s. This is a huge drop in just three decades.”

Deforestation is so bad that the remaining trees can't produce enough Oxygen to offset the difference. Too much CO2 and not enough trees. Trees and plants require CO2 and water that combines to make glucose which then produces Oxygen. 

We can't undo the problem. So do we give up and watch the next two generations run out of Oxygen. We may not have to settle for this outcome.

I have an idea that might offer a solution. It isn't a simple solution. It isn't even a solution. It is a method of adapting to our circumstances by changing the dynamics. 

There is an outside chance it might buy us some time. In 1988 I wrote a story (never published) about a culture of people that lived under the sea that had developed the means of providing Oxygen and Hydrogen gas to take care of their energy needs and living environment by electrolysis from ocean water. This process gave me the idea of using this for our current dilemma.

Electrolysis is the process of separating H2 and Oxygen gas from salt water by the use of Direct Current from negative and positive electrodes. H2 and O2 bubbles rise from the electrodes. The H2 could be contained and distributed for use as an alternative to fossil fuel which rises from the surface because it is lighter than air. The Oxygen gas would simply be directed to where it is needed most.

My solution is this: If electrolysis (extraction) platforms were placed all over the Earth in the oceans similar to oil platforms to produce H2-O2 gas from the salt water they could produce breathable Oxygen and Hydrogen gas that could be used for clean energy from every drop of salt water. Solar panels could supply the  Direct Current that would be needed for the electrolysis.  The Oxygen and Hydrogen gas extraction from a saline solution is old technology, but may be a viable solution to our continued existence. 
We could even move enough salt water inland to convert into fresh water by converting all fossil burning entities into Hydrogen burning entities. When Hydrogen burns it produces energy and reverts back to pure water from the original salt water source.  Thus we take ocean water, convert it into Hydrogen gas for energy, Oxygen for breathable air and a residual product; pure water which would provide a source of potable water for use as needed.

We could conceivably produce enough Oxygen to offset our pending situation and the Hydrogen gas could provide clean renewable energy which burns cleaner and safer than fossil fuels. 

Hydrogen gas burns absolutely clean and produces zero Carbon Dioxide (CO2). It has the octane equivalency of regular unleaded gasoline and produces drinkable water when burned. The benefit of burning large amounts of H2 would result in sizable amounts of fresh water.

“Evidence from prehistoric times indicates that the oxygen content of pristine nature was above the 21% of total volume that it is today. It has decreased in recent times due mainly to the burning of coal in the middle of the last century. Currently, the Oxygen content of the Earth’s atmosphere dips to 19% over impacted areas, and it is down to 12 to 17% over the major cities. At these levels it is difficult for people to get sufficient oxygen to maintain bodily health: it takes a proper intake of oxygen to keep body cells and organs, and the entire immune system, functioning at full efficiency.  

At the levels we have reached today cancers and other degenerative diseases are likely to develop. And at 6 to 7% life can no longer be sustained.”.

“According to a study conducted by scientists from the Scripps Institute there is less oxygen in the atmosphere today than there used to be. The ongoing study, which accumulated and interpreted data from NOAA monitoring stations all over the world, has been running from 1989 to the present. It monitored both the rise of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and the decline in oxygen. The conclusion of that 20-year study is that, as carbon dioxide (produced primarily by burning fossil fuels) accumulates in the atmosphere, available oxygen is decreasing.”

“Plants and certain bacteria take in carbon dioxide, combine it with water to form glucose and produce oxygen as a byproduct in the photosynthesis reaction. The current increase in carbon dioxide levels in our atmosphere indicates that this cycle is no longer in balance. It shows that we have reached the point where the biosphere of the planet can no longer process all of the carbon dioxide that we are producing.”

To this point, I have not addressed the scenario of what we face globally in the way of other catastrophic disasters. The whole balance of nature has been changed dramatically. We are in danger of extreme droughts, fires, excessive heat, rising oceans, flooding, crop failures and even starvation. Many of these conditions are already occurring globally. There are other complex issues that are going on in the world that require the expertise of specialists associated with these disciplines to explain their consequences.  My concern is to inform about the depletion of atmospheric Oxygen. 

“Desertification and deforestation are rapidly accelerating this long-term loss of oxygen sources.

Note: "The story at sea is much the same. NASA reports that in the north Pacific ocean oxygen-producing phytoplankton concentrations are 30% lower today, compared to the 1980s. This is a huge drop in just three decades.”

“Within the past several years, however, scientists have found that oxygen (O2) in the atmosphere has been dropping, and at higher rates than just the amount that goes into the increase of CO2 from burning fossil fuels, some 2 to 4-times as much, and accelerating since 2002-2003 [1-3]. Simultaneously, oxygen levels in the world’s oceans have also been falling [4] (see Warming Oceans Starved of Oxygen, SiS 44).

"....humans, all mammals, birds, frogs, butterfly, bees, and other air-breathing life-forms depend on this high level of oxygen for their well being [5]Living with Oxygen (SiS 43). In humans, failure of oxygen energy metabolism is the single most important risk factor for chronic diseases including cancer and death. ‘Oxygen deficiency’ is currently set at 19.5 percent in enclosed spaces for health and safety [6], below that, fainting and death may result “