Explain the role of forest in maintaining the balance between oxygen and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere

The atmospheric carbon cycle accounts for the exchange of gaseous 2), between Earth's atmosphere, the oceans, and the terrestrial 2 remain stable over longer timescales only when there exists a balance between these two flows. CH 4), Human activities, primarily the extraction and burning of 2 and CH 4 concentrations. 2. Assuming the growth trend in emissions continues, the CO 2 concentration is on a path to at least double by the latter half of this century. The atmospheric carbon cycle also strongly influences Relevant gases [ ] Part of a series on the Main article: Methane (CH 4) is one of the more potent greenhouse gases and is mainly produced by the digestion or decay of biological organisms. It is considered the second most important greenhouse gas, Large stores of methane can be found in the form of Anthropogenic methane is produced in various ways, e.g. by raising cattle or through the decay of trash in landfills. It is also produced by several industrial sources, including the mining and distribution of fossil fuels. Methane can be removed from the atmosphere through a reaction of the photochemically produced Carbon dioxide [ ] Main article: Carbon dioxide ( 2) has a large warming effect on global temperatures through the 2 molecules have a short 2 concentration in the atmosphere has risen from about 280 ppm to almost 400 ppm. 2 introduced makes up only a small portion of the global carbon cycle, carbon dioxide's long residence time makes these emissions relevant f...

Carbon has become a growing issue with forests and forest management, usually spoken about in terms of carbon dioxide and climate effects. There are conflicting schools of thoughts about the role of forest management and use of wood products. The • Keep forests as forests and manage appropriate forests for carbon. • Recognize that substantial quantities of carbon are stored in wood products for long periods of time. • The substitution effect is immediate, irreversible and cumulative. • It is imperative in policy development that objective, science-based analyses are used, that holistic thinking that encompasses the full suite of options in forest management be employed, and that particularly close attention be paid to assumptions and models underlying analyses. To better understand this somewhat counter-intuitive idea, envision various pools where carbon is stored. There are pools in forests, the oceans, the soil and the atmosphere. The carbon volumes vary from pool to pool. Carbon also cycles normally among the pools both naturally and through human activity. The carbon balance in the forest pool varies with the age of the forest, the volume of timber and other forest factors. Moving carbon from the atmosphere into forests is called sequestration. However, forests will not sequester carbon forever. Older forests may actually become carbon emitters. Management helps keep forests younger and more rapidly sequestering carbon. However, harvesting forests also releases carbon,...

The trees of tropical forests, like all green plants, take up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and release oxygen during photosynthesis. They also carry out the opposite process—known as respiration—but when forests are growing, photosynthesis exceeds respiration, and the surplus carbon is stored in tree trunks and roots and in the soil. This is called “sequestration.” When forests are cut down, much of that stored carbon is released into the atmosphere again as carbon dioxide (CO 2). This is how deforestation and forest degradation contribute to global warming. The consensus among climate scientists is that CO 2 from tropical deforestation now makes up less than 10 percent of global warming pollution. This percentage has gone down in recent decades, partly due to some success in reducing deforestation, but also because greenhouse gases from burning fossil fuels—by far the principal cause of climate change—have continued to increase. Where and why deforestation is happening The planet’s largest areas of tropical forest are the Amazon basin in South America, the Congo Basin in Central Africa, and Southeast Asia. The amount of deforestation, and its causes, are quite different in Forests are cleared to make way for any of a long list of agricultural products and other human activities. But most of the tropical deforestation occurring today can be traced to just four globally traded commodities: beef, soybeans, palm oil, and wood products. Amazonia has both the largest area...

Forests are referred to as the lungs of the Earth. These absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and release oxygen into the atmosphere which we take in while breathing and later it is used for respiration and other processes by our body. They play a vital role in maintaining the clouds and in turn the rainfall pattern, humidity, climate stability, and air quality. • Forests are referred to as the green lungs. This is due to the fact that plants in forests release oxygen through photosynthesis, which aids in the supply of oxygen to animals for respiration. • Plants absorb carbon dioxide that is emitted by animals. • Plants contribute to the equilibrium of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere in this way.

Increases in carbon dioxide (CO 2), and other pollutants in the atmosphere known to affect global climate, has caused some people to become interested in carbon capture and sequestration technology. Fortunately, one of the best carbon capture systems already exists: trees and forests. According to the US Forest Service, America's forests sequester over 800 million tons of carbon a year, which is roughly 12% of the US annual emissions (depending on the year). Forests sequester or store carbon mainly in trees and soil. During the process of photosynthesis trees pull carbon out of the atmosphere to make sugar, but they also release carbon dioxide back into the atmosphere through decomposition. Carbon and other gases within forests are captured and released on a cycle. Forest management is able to influence these cycles and enhance carbon capture. Trees Trees are without a doubt the best carbon capture technology in the world. When they perform photosynthesis, they pull carbon dioxide out of the air, bind it up in sugar, and release oxygen. Trees use sugar to build wood, branches, and roots. Wood is an incredible carbon sink because it is mostly made of carbon (about 50%), it lasts for years as a standing tree, and takes years to break down after the tree dies. While trees mainly store carbon, they do release some carbon, such as when their leaves decompose, or their roots burn sugar to capture nutrients and water. Let's look at a real example, a white oak can live for 200 yea...

Mountain building results in high erosion rates and the interaction of rocks with the atmosphere, water and life. Carbon transfers that result from increased erosion could control the evolution of Earth’s long-term climate. For decades, attention has focused on the hypothesized role of mountain building in drawing down atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO 2) via silicate weathering. However, it is now recognized that mountain building and erosion affect the carbon cycle in other important ways. For example, erosion mobilizes organic carbon (OC) from terrestrial vegetation, transferring it to rivers and sediments, and thereby acting to draw down atmospheric CO 2 in tandem with silicate weathering. Meanwhile, exhumation of sedimentary rocks can release CO 2 through the oxidation of rock OC and sulfide minerals. In this Review, we examine the mechanisms of carbon exchange between rocks and the atmosphere, and discuss the balance of CO 2 sources and sinks. It is demonstrated that OC burial and oxidative weathering, not widely considered in most models, control the net CO 2 budget associated with erosion. Lithology strongly influences the impact of mountain building on the global carbon cycle, with an orogeny dominated by sedimentary rocks, and thus abundant rock OC and sulfides, tending towards being a CO 2 source. • Erosion resulting from mountain building increases transfer of carbon between the atmosphere and storage in rocks. • The traditional view has focused on carbon dioxide ...

But as forests burn and global warming worsens, the impact of Amazon deforestation continues to gradually undo the fragile ecological processes that have been refined over millions of years. Ironically, as rainforest continues to disappear, scientific work from the last two decades has shed light on the critical ties that link the health of rainforests to the rest of the world. Filtering and reprocessing the world’s harmful carbon dioxide output Trees have hidden attributes that play a key role in reducing pollutant levels. Take 2) for example, a gas emitted from both natural and human sources. Over the last 150 years, humans have been pumping massive amounts of CO 2 into the air by burning fossil fuels, coal, oil and natural gas - this is a major driver for global climate change. Carbon dioxide in, oxygen out Under natural conditions, plants remove CO 2 from the atmosphere and absorb it for • Oxygen, which is released back into the air • Carbon, which allows the plant to grow. So, without tropical rainforests the greenhouse effect would likely be even more pronounced, and climate change may possibly get even worse in the future. Amazon rainforests and carbon dioxide What forests take from the air, they can also give back. When forests burn, tree carbon matter is released in the form of CO 2, which pollutes the atmosphere, and of which there are already excessive quantities. Where rainforest and savanna once stood, pastures for cattle-ranching are now appearing. Pastures t...

[Music in] NARRATOR: Carbon and oxygen are two elements that are essential to life. They are naturally present in the atmosphere in the form of carbon dioxide and gaseous oxygen. Because they're always circulating between the soil, the air, and the water, living matter's constantly renewed. Atmospheric oxygen comes mainly from green plants. When they're exposed to light, green plants use carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to manufacture living matter and release oxygen into the air. This process is called photosynthesis. Carbon dioxide is produced through the respiration of animals and plants, which consume oxygen and release carbon dioxide. When biomass is subjected to decomposition or combustion, the carbon fixed in living matter is also released into the atmosphere in the form of carbon dioxide. The release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere is compensated for by photosynthesis and by the dissolution of the gas in the oceans. But human activities are disturbing this balance to the point where carbon tends to accumulate in the atmosphere. [Music out]

The trees of tropical forests, like all green plants, take up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and release oxygen during photosynthesis. They also carry out the opposite process—known as respiration—but when forests are growing, photosynthesis exceeds respiration, and the surplus carbon is stored in tree trunks and roots and in the soil. This is called “sequestration.” When forests are cut down, much of that stored carbon is released into the atmosphere again as carbon dioxide (CO 2). This is how deforestation and forest degradation contribute to global warming. The consensus among climate scientists is that CO 2 from tropical deforestation now makes up less than 10 percent of global warming pollution. This percentage has gone down in recent decades, partly due to some success in reducing deforestation, but also because greenhouse gases from burning fossil fuels—by far the principal cause of climate change—have continued to increase. Where and why deforestation is happening The planet’s largest areas of tropical forest are the Amazon basin in South America, the Congo Basin in Central Africa, and Southeast Asia. The amount of deforestation, and its causes, are quite different in Forests are cleared to make way for any of a long list of agricultural products and other human activities. But most of the tropical deforestation occurring today can be traced to just four globally traded commodities: beef, soybeans, palm oil, and wood products. Amazonia has both the largest area...

Forests are referred to as the lungs of the Earth. These absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and release oxygen into the atmosphere which we take in while breathing and later it is used for respiration and other processes by our body. They play a vital role in maintaining the clouds and in turn the rainfall pattern, humidity, climate stability, and air quality. • Forests are referred to as the green lungs. This is due to the fact that plants in forests release oxygen through photosynthesis, which aids in the supply of oxygen to animals for respiration. • Plants absorb carbon dioxide that is emitted by animals. • Plants contribute to the equilibrium of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere in this way.