Isn't this just cycling carbon in ecosystem? Same as planting tree on 100 year scale is pointless... I would imagine that hydro is ~neutral on 100 year scale, while coal is not, since we introduce carbon into ecosystem. What am I missing?
Produces methane, not CO2 because the plants decompose in an oxygen free environment. Because of the cycling of water throughout the year, during the dry seasons plants grow along the shoreline (which varies considerably because of the use of hydro), and then are covered up during the rainy season. This can be hundreds of kms every year.
Methane isn't great, but unlike CO2 is has a pretty short lifetime in the atmosphere (just 12 years). So the impact of the methane release from hydro is basically static rather than an ever increasing problem.
soperj|2 years ago
cogman10|2 years ago