CO2:Bad For People, Great For Trees

New findings indicate we may be only able to go so far in cleaning up CO2 emissions. Since our urban trees love the stuff, taking it all away is just not an option. Here's to a happy medium.

Check Planet Earth once again demonstrating her genius at making lemonade out of mankind's lemons. Recent finding on the micro-managed subject of CO2 emissions indicate plants absorbed carbon dioxide more efficiently under polluted skies than they would have done in a cleaner atmosphere. The results of the study have important implications for efforts to combat future climate change which are likely to take place alongside attempts to lower air pollution levels. And may be read by some as justification for breaking out the Hummers again. The research team included scientists from the Center for Ecology & Hydrology, the Met Office Hadley Centre, ETH Zurich and the University of Exeter, said the effects of atmospheric pollution appears to have pumped up global plant productivity by as much as a quarter from 1960 to 1999. This resulted in a net 10 percent increase in the amount of carbon stored by the land once other effects were taken into account Reductions in sunlight reduce photosynthesis, but clouds and atmospheric particles scatter sunlight, meaning plants are then able to convert more of the available sunlight into growth because fewer leaves are in the shade. This is exactly the opposite to the common perception that well-watered plants grow best on a bright sunny day. Plants often thrive in hazy conditions whether brought about by atmospheric pollution or not. It's just that increased pollution leads to more hazy days. The research team also considered the implications of these findings for efforts to avoid dangerous climate change. This new finding only underline how tricky pulling that off will be. As we clean up the air in the lower atmosphere, the challenge of avoiding dangerous climate change through reductions in CO2 emissions will be even harder, Th statement noted that different climate changing pollutants have very different direct effects on plants, and this will need to be taken into account in future decisions about dealing with climate change/ The researchers didn't come right out and say it but this kind of thing is music to the naysayers ears, the folks who have vested interests in coal and oil. Any sense that this CO2 thing mightn't be so bad after all is bound to be blown out of perspective.