Older trees have important carbon capture role – countering existing theories that mature woodland has no capacity to respond to elevated carbon dioxide levels.
Older trees have important carbon capture role – countering existing theories that mature woodland has no capacity to respond to elevated carbon dioxide levels.
Mature forests have a key role to play in the fight against climate change – extracting carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere and locking it into new wood, a new study reveals.
Researchers discovered that older trees responded to increased atmospheric levels of CO2 by increasing production of woody biomass – countering existing theories that mature woodland has no capacity to respond to elevated CO2 levels.
The experts found exposure to elevated levels of the greenhouse gas (ambient atmosphere + 150 parts per million CO2; about a 40% increase) increased wood production by an average of 9.8% over a seven-year period. No corresponding increase in production of material such as leaves or fine roots, which release CO2 into the atmosphere relatively quickly, could be detected.
Read more at University of Birmingham
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