CO2 Increase in Atmosphere Stimulates Growth of Plants

London, Jul 30 (Prensa Latina) Scientists of Harvard University, in United States, discovered that the increase of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere stimulated plant growth in the last 20 years.

According to the study, whose results were published by Nature magazine, plants used water in a more efficient way because the amount of CO2 in the environment increased to levels without precedent.

The research, carried out by professor Trevor Keenan, studied samples from 21 forests in the northern hemisphere during two decades to determine the effect of global warming on plants.

The updated numbers show the current amount of CO2 in the atmosphere is present in 400 parts out of one million, which represents a 43 percent increase compared to the pre-industrial age.

Most of the increase took place in the last 20 years, with an upward rate of 5 percent every 10 years, a fact that boosted plants grow.

"A higher level of CO2 would represent for the plants an increase of the photosynthesis and a reduction of water intake", said the authors of the study.