Concerns regarding emissions of CO₂ into the atmosphere have increased substantially since an article on combustion of forests and grasslands was published in 1990. Data in the table below show global emissions of carbon-containing compounds released to the atmosphere from biomass combustion and from all combustion sources in 1990.

The numbers in the middle column reflect annual quantities of carbon released to the atmosphere in the indicated compounds; for example, 8700 metric tons of carbon (8.7 × 10⁶ kg C) was released in carbon dioxide.

(a) Determine the combined annual release (in metric tons) of all three species resulting from biomass combustion and the average molecular weight of the combined gases.

(b) Find a reference on atmospheric pollution and list the environmental hazards associated with CO and CO₂ release. What other elements might be released in environmentally hazardous forms if biomass is burned?

(c) From recent data, estimate the percentage change in total CO₂ emissions since 1990.

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Metric Tons C, % from Biomass Metric Tons C, All Sources Compound 8700 1100 380 40 26 10 CO2 CO CH,