CO2 in the atmosphere is a good thing. It keeps plants growing flat out. Plants are good. They are the feedstock for the ecosystem. They suck in CO2 and give us back oxygen.
Of course, anyone who took sixth-grade biology knows that, Mq., but the true problem is that CO2 cannot be recycled through plants as quickly as we are intent on producing it, particularly since we are at the same time wildly toppling the green stuff that does the trick. Cycling CO2 through the biosphere takes a very long time--therein lies the rub that I have yet to see you acknowledge.
Some scientists believe as you do, i.e, that increased C02 will cause greater plant life:
co2andclimate.org
Some think CO2 is more or less in balance, despite increased man-made production:
216.239.51.104
I think that our knowledge of the biosphere is too limited at this point for any simple answers. We do know this, however: if we are overloading the Earth with excess CO2, admittedly a big if, we will see a greenhouse effect. Given the certainty of this possibility, the question is: what is it prudent to do in view of our limited knowledge? The answer is: be prudent and decrease the human activity that increases CO2 regardless of the science because the consequences of being wrong could be disastrous.
The reduction of man-made CO2 levels is a good thing for other unrelated reasons, i.e., conservation, efficiency, good politics, reduction of dependence on oil, etc. |
