Environment & Energy

Duke University ran a long-term study concentrating on the effects of higher CO2 levels on loblolly pine stands. Granted, one species in a limited research plot, but having said all that . . .

What they found is that there was an initial growth spurt as the CO2-enhanced trees grew more quickly than those in the control group. However, over time, growth rates for trees in the experimental group fell back, and then fell below the ongoing growth rates for the control group.

What they suspected is that the faster growth rates of the trees goosed by extra CO2 content simply used up soil nutrients more quickly, hence the slump in growth after the initial kick-start.

I'm sorry, I can't remember the exact location of the paper/report, but it was interesting.