Let's assume that a tremendous technological advance in renewable energy occurs in 2050, and we no longer burn fossil fuels after 2050 (unrealistic, I know).
If the rate of carbon removal from the atmosphere remains constant, in what year will the atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration return to 350 ppm?
Hint: Recall that soils, plants, oceans, and the lithosphere currently remove carbon at a rate of 5.2 gigatonnes per year.
Please type the answer out in the following format:
The atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide will return to 350 ppm by the year XXXX.