When it comes to reducing the impact of climate change, humanity appears caught between a rock and a hard place. But, in this case, the rock may offer a surprisingly softer landing.
The rocky surface of our planet’s geology may provide a buffered bumper to absorb excess carbon – that is, if society wants to protect Earth, according to a new paper co-authored by Benjamin Houlton, Cornell’s Ronald P. Lynch Dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, and professor of ecology and evolutionary biology.
The study, led by the University of California at Davis, Northern Arizona University and Cornell, published Oct. 4 in the journal Global Biogeochemical Cycles.
“Excess carbon is already harming people, economies and our planet,” said Houlton, the paper’s senior author “But we’ve been enjoying a free subsidy provided by Earth – a large carbon sink on land and in the ocean – and, as a society we’re not paying for the carbon-sink service explicitly. But where is this sink and how long will it last?”
Continue reading at Cornell University
Image via Cornell University
