Resumen

MENDOZA, Víctor M.; GARDUNO, René; VILLANUEVA, Elba E.  y  MENDOZA, Blanca. Mexico's contribution to global radiative forcing by major anthropogenic greenhouse gases: CO₂, CH₄ and N₂O. Atmósfera [online]. 2015, vol.28, n.3, pp.219-227. ISSN 0187-6236.

The IPCC (2013) gives simplified formulas to compute the radiative forcing (RF) resulting from the increase in anthropogenic greenhouse gases (AGG): carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane (CH₄), nitrous oxide (N₂O) and halocarbons. These formulas allow to compute the global RF of these gases relative to their pre-industrial (1750 A.D.) concentrations, and are used in this work to estimate the contribution of Mexico to the global RF by its emissions of CO₂ (the most significant of the AGG), CH₄ and N₂O during the period 1990-2011, which are reported in the Inventario Nacional de Emisiones de Gases de Efecto Invernadero (National Inventory of Greenhouse Gases Emissions, INEGEI) (INECC, 2013). In comparison, by 2010 the national emissions per capita of Argentina, Spain and the United States were 108.8, 110.8 and 327.0% of the Mexican emissions, respectively, in units of equivalent CO₂. Mexico's CO₂ emissions retained in the atmosphere during 1990-2011 amount to 4 624 457 Gg; they are higher than those of Spain and Argentina together, and represent 1/12 of the USA contribution. Mexico's contribution is 1.47% of the global RF due to C0₂, with a similar proportion than Spain and Argentina, but a smaller fraction compared to that of the USA (1/15). The main uncertainties of our computations for Mexico's contribution to the global RF come from national emissions; the INEGEI indicates that the emissions considered for the calculation of uncertainties represent 89% of the total emissions of the inventory, resulting in a total uncertainty of ±5.6%. We are aware that, as a consequence, the concentration increase of CH₄ and N₂O due to Mexico's emissions retained in the atmosphere during 1990-2011 is lower than their respective uncertainties for global concentrations: 1.72 vs. 2 ppbv and 0.13 vs. 1 ppbv.

Palabras llave : Anthropogenic greenhouse gases; global radiative forcing; contribution of Mexico.

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