Plants do depend on carbon dioxide in the atmosphere to produce plant food, but at a certain point enough is enough. Just as us humans, or any species, do not thrive from a rising caloric intake resulting in over-consumption, the increase in CO₂ emissions has gotten to a point where it no longer benefits plant growth. Plants do not live on CO₂ alone, so only boosting one part of their diet will likely not influence plant growth. They also require nitrogen, water, and other nutrients which would all need to be boosted along with CO₂ in order to have any potential benefit. Plants would especially need more water because of the rising temperature increase due to CO₂ emissions. This warmer climate not only increases evaporation rates, but also reduces the areas in which crops grow, replacing many landscapes with deserts. Another effect of increasing CO₂ levels is more abundance of intense storms. Although one would think this should be beneficial to agriculture, when rain falls in short, intense bursts it does not have time to soak into the ground; rather, it quickly floods into nearby bodies of water, carrying away large amounts of soil and fertilizer. Not only does an over-abundance of CO₂ drastically decrease plant yield, but plants also become more vulnerable to insects, such as Japanese beetles, and resulting changes in the soil chemistry make plants more susceptible to disease. By continuing to add to the atmospheric concentrations of CO₂, we are only proving the statement that "too much of a good thing" is actually a very bad thing.

Last modified: 23 October 2017