Actually, rotting on the forest floor some of the carbon ends up as a major, vital, soil component. That didn't stop me from roasting TONS of coffee with my brick oven coffee roaster, feeling no guilt whatsoever. Too difficult to control the roast profile, however, for commercial sales to fussy coffee shops. Ron Kyle took my roaster drum design and made it better and now I use a RK extra large drum with a gas grill and life is sweet without any more wood scavaging/chopping/smoking up the neighborhood every day. Lucky for me they don't drill for propane around here. I here it's a nasty business. And, oh yeah...I like trees and I really don't like your attitude, dude.
(oaxaca) Charly