This is The Environment Report.
We hear a lot about carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas. But there are other chemicals that trap heat and contribute to global warming. One of them is an insecticide used to fumigate termite infested buildings. It's called Sulfuryl fluoride. That insecticide is four-thousand times better at trapping heat than carbon dioxide. It's been estimated that Sulfuryl flouride hangs around in the atmosphere for five years or so but new research shows that it last a lot longer than that.
Mads Sulbaek Andersen, working with other researchers at the University of California – Irvine published a study in the journal Environmental Science and Technology .
He's with us now first how is this termite insecticide used?
What did you discover about how long this insecticide stays in the atmosphere?
Is this a significant contributor to global warming?
Are there any kinds of chemicals that could replace Sulfuryl fluoride?
Mads (mass) Sulbaek Anderson is a researcher at the University of California – Irvine.
Thanks for talking with us.
Emne
Researchers discover that a powerful greenhouse gas in termite fumigants can linger in the atmosphere for decades. The study reports that the compound is 4,000 times more effective at trapping heat than CO2