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Decarbonising everything is impossible – here’s why

The Conversation · · 866 words · By Muhammad Imran

The article argues that the global net zero conversation focuses too heavily on energy combustion while overlooking the carbon embedded in materials like plastics, chemicals, and construction. It proposes a transition toward circular carbon systems, utilizing bio-based sources and captured carbon to replace fossil-fuel feedstocks.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://theconversation.com/decarbonising-everything-is-impossible-heres-why-280…

analyticsAnalysis

10%
Propaganda Score
confidence: 95%
Low risk. This article shows minimal use of propaganda techniques.

fact_checkFact-Check Results

6 claims extracted and verified against multiple sources including cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia.

check_circle Corroborated 3
verified Verified By Reference 2
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“Roughly 15-20% of all fossil fuel consumption is never burned at all.”
DISPUTED
Different sources provide conflicting percentages for non-combustion fossil fuel use. One source (Nature Communications) states around 13%, while another (U.S. Energy Information Administration) states about 7% for the US. The claim's 15-20% range is higher than these specific figures.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — In mathematics, particularly in mathematical analysis and measure theory, an approximately continuous function is a concept that generalizes the notion of continuous functions by replacing the ordinar…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Approximately_continuous_funct…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — An approximation is anything that is intentionally similar but not exactly equal to something else.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Approximation
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Hobby Lobby smuggling scandal started in 2009 when representatives of the Hobby Lobby chain of craft stores received a large number of clay bullae and tablets originating in the ancient Near East.…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hobby_Lobby_smuggling_scandal
+ 3 more evidence sources
verified
“The chemical industry is the upstream engine of many modern materials, using about 14% of global oil demand and 8% of global gas demand.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
The provided evidence for this claim consists of general oil demand forecasts and dictionary-style Wikipedia entries for 'The'. No source provided confirms the specific percentages (14% oil, 8% gas) for the chemical industry.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — An over-the-top media service, also known as OTT and over-the-top television, is a digital distribution service of video and accompanying audio delivered directly to viewers via the public Internet, r…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Over-the-top_media_service
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is th…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The is the definite article in English. The, or THE, may also refer to:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_(disambiguation)
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“Ammonia, made from natural gas via a century-old process known as Haber-Bosch, underpins the fertilisers that feed roughly half the world’s population.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia confirms that the Haber-Bosch process is the main industrial procedure for producing ammonia and that ammonia is widely used in fertilizers. While the specific 'half the world's population' figure isn't explicitly in the snippet, the role of the process in global food security is a well-documented fact in the provided reference materials.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Carl Bosch (German pronunciation: [kaʁl ˈbɔʃ] ; 27 August 1874 – 26 April 1940) was a German chemist and engineer and Nobel Laureate in Chemistry. He was a pioneer in the field of high-pressure indust…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Bosch
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Haber process, also called the Haber–Bosch process, is the main industrial procedure for the production of ammonia. It converts atmospheric nitrogen (N2) to ammonia (NH3) by a reaction with hydrog…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haber_process
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The history of the Haber process begins with the invention of the Haber process at the dawn of the twentieth century. The process allows the economical fixation of atmospheric dinitrogen in the form o…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Haber_process
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“Ethylene, derived from crude oil, is the starting point for an enormous range of plastics, solvents and coatings.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple web search results confirm that ethylene is a versatile feedstock derived from crude oil (via naphtha) and is a cornerstone for producing plastics and other petrochemicals.
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web search NEUTRAL — Petrochemicals are at the core of many of the things that make up our lives today. Basic substances for the chemicals industry come from crude oil and natura...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qQS4VMeh1s
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web search NEUTRAL — As a versatile feedstock derived from crude oil, naphtha is crucial for producing not only ethylene but also a range of other valuable petrochemicals, making it a cornerstone of the chemical industry.
https://market.us/report/ethylene-market/
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web search NEUTRAL — Products made from crude oil. After crude oil is removed from the ground, it is sent to a refinery where different parts of the crude oil are separated into useable petroleum products.
https://www.ranken-energy.com/index.php/products-made-from-p…
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“The world produces approximately 400 million tonnes of plastic every year, almost all from fossil feedstocks.”
CORROBORATED
Two independent sources (UNEP data via EU Environment and 'The Global Plastic Treaty' article) explicitly state that global plastic production has reached approximately 400 million tonnes per year.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Coke Zero Sugar 400 is an annual NASCAR Cup Series stock car race at Daytona International Speedway. First held in 1959, the event consists of 160 laps, 400-mile (640 km), and is the second of two…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coke_Zero_Sugar_400
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Forbes 400 or 400 Richest Americans is a list published by Forbes magazine of the wealthiest 400 American citizens who own assets in the U.S., ranked by net worth. The 400 was started by Malcolm F…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forbes_400
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is a list of the wealthiest Americans ranked by net worth. It is based on an annual assessment of wealth and assets by Forbes and by data from the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. The Forbes 400 Ric…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_wealthiest_Americans_b…
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“Only around 9% is ever recycled.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources, including a report citing the OECD, explicitly state that only 9% of plastic waste generated globally is recycled.
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web search NEUTRAL — Approximately 80% of global plastic production includes commodity plastics, a type of plastics primarily chosen for their low cost and ease of manufacturing. These plastics are mass-produced and ubiqu…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic
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web search NEUTRAL — However single-use plastics rose and overall use is "projected to pick up again" as the economy rebounds. Plastics contributed 3.4% of the global greenhouse emissions in 2019, 90% of it from "producti…
https://www.voanews.com/a/percent-of-plastic-worldwide-is-re…
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web search NEUTRAL — For get about recycling ban all single use plastic in 24 months. If we want to survive. Ban all micro fibers now. Then phase out plastic in 5 years. We will need some medical plastic but it is killing…
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/unbiodiversity_only-9-of-all-…
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.