With oil being a finite resource, it is pretty much a given that we will eventually use all of it. That means that in the end, the same exact amount of co2 ends up in the atmosphere.

I don't see how hybrids really make much difference in terms of global warming. At best, they will postpone the depletion of oil for a few years.

Please Discuss.

This sort of sounds like: "I've think I've got inoperable cancer, where's my gun?...."

61.5mpg lifetime - 82mpg in recent months

Best Run >
www.cleanmpg.com

"fanatic" is what the lazy call the dedicated

Not really... The gun solves your cancer problem.

Maybe we should focus on finding a way to remove the co2 since we know we will continue to produce it until the oil is depleted.

Eventually you will die, so should you just kill yourself today? Besides, it's not certain we'll use up all oil (though it is pretty likely) since we may switch to alternative energy sources before that happens, and hybrid technology is crucial for that.

Finding a practical way to remove CO2 is a good idea, but so is not generating so much of it in the first place.

61.5mpg lifetime - 82mpg in recent months

Best Run >
www.cleanmpg.com

"fanatic" is what the lazy call the dedicated

This assumes that one's main reason for buying a hybrid is to combat global warming, not save money on gas or do your part to delay the peak of oil production.

It also forgets that buying hybrid cars now proves that their is a market for efficiency and helps spur the development of even more efficient vehicles and better battieries (such as the edrivesystems plug-in option, or the rumored 94mpg PriusIII). The Prius is not the be-all-end-all, it's the first step towards a carbon-free future.

Finally, it ignores the fact that by pumping less C02 into the air *per year* (i.e. if we all drove 100mpg hybrids for the next 100 years rather than 15 mpg SUVs for the next 15 years until oil depletion really kicks in) its going to be alot easier for the planet's natural systems and/or manufactured technical systems to "clean" the atmosphere.

I think I already covered the "generating so much of it" part... we're going to generate the same amount from oil.

54% of oil is used for personal transport. Let's say a hybrid of the same vehicle uses 30% less fuel. Even if EVERYBODY drove a hybrid, you'd only reduce oil consumption and co2 production by 16% at best.

In terms of global warming, how does reducing oil consumption by 16% a year make a difference?

What natural systems clean the CO2 from the atmosphere?

Plants do but they also produce methane when they decompose. The best way to lock up the CO2 lies in the world's oceans. Algae and tiny phytoplankton use carbon from the air (CO2 dissolved in sea water) to produce calcium carbonate (shells, bones, etc) all of which settles to the bottom and there it stays for ever. The oceans are the biggest carbon "sink". So I guess when the polar ice caps and glaciers all melt and the ocean levels rise there will be more of these little creatures to deal with all the carbon we produce, but by then it will be too late. What does all of this mean? We have upset the balance that was in place for millions of years and if we don't do something to reduce the CO2 levels now, our future generations will suffer.

If we stop producing CO2 or reduce the levels that we produce, maybe Mother Nature will be able to reverse the tide....The earth is a living thing not just another dead piece of space rock so it will correct itself eventually.

Didn't photosynthesis take millions of years to lock up the carbon... the same carbon we're now putting back into the atmosphere at breakneck speeds?

Does the carbon eventually get released back into the atmosphere if it doesn't end up underground?