What a Ton of Carbon Dioxide Looks Like

Ken Dean asks "What does a ton of Carbon Dioxide look like? (Naracoorte Herald, 1 August 2013). He points out CO₂ is a colorless gas and asks how it can cost $23 per ton under the carbon pollution scheme. CO₂ is an everyday commodity, used to put the bubbles in fizzy drinks. If you have seen a truck loaded with gas cylinders delivering to a pub, then you have seen a ton of CO₂. Thirty of these large steel cylinders used in pubs for beer, hold about one ton of CO₂. The cylinders are very heavy and if you dropped on on your foot you would realize how real CO₂ is. Smaller CO₂ cylinders are used in home soda-water makers. These hold about half a kilogram of CO₂ and the last time I got a refill it was $14.00, making the CO₂ of the carbon pollution scheme a bargain.