Short cycle Carbon is not Automatically Sustainable.

CEWT Foundation Series Short-Cycle Carbon Is Not Automatically Sustainable The climate debate often simplifies carbon into two categories: fossil carbon and bio carbon. The assumption follows: if carbon comes from plants, it must be sustainable. This is incomplete. Carbon neutrality is not determined by the word “bio.” It is determined by carbon timing, land integrity, and fossil displacement. When biomass is harvested, converted, and burned, CO₂ is released immediately. Re-absorption depends on: • Regrowth time • Soil carbon preservation • Land-use stability • Process energy source If regrowth takes decades, atmospheric concentration rises in the interim. If soil carbon declines, neutrality fails. If fossil fertilizers dominate, the system leaks fossil carbon indirectly. Short-cycle carbon must align with climate timelines. Seasonal regrowth is different from multi-decade forest recovery. The deeper principle is this: There are only two categories of carbon movement: 1. Carbon circulating within the active atmosphere–biosphere system. 2. Carbon moved from geological storage into that active system. Climate disruption occurs when we move carbon from (2) into (1). Biomass remains within (1). Fossil extraction moves carbon from (2) to (1). The priority, therefore, is not merely decarbonisation. It is defossilisation. Biofuels may contribute to this transition. But sustainability must be proven, not assumed. The future belongs to systems that eliminate new fossil inputs while minimizing land pressure and preserving natural carbon equilibrium. Carbon is not the enemy. Geological carbon release is.