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by James001 3584 days ago
Really?

You're going to extrapolate from lower nitrogen levels in plants in higher CO2 conditions (without a citation, might i add) to higher CO2 levels causing overall lower nutrition? and more aggressive soil depletion? Keep in mind that obviously more plant growth means more plant decay which cycles back int othe ecosystem.

Are you trying to suggest that we should be decreasing agricultural yields so as to prevent soil depletion? There are better ways.
1 comments
mikeash 3584 days ago
"without a citation, might i add"

Odd card to play when your comment had no citations either, and you seem to be ignoring my request for them....

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James001 3583 days ago
It's well established that increased CO2 leads to increased plant biomass, thereby satisfying my claim that it leads to increased agricultural yield (as per greenhouses for example).

My claim that increased CO2 leads to more biodiversity is more tenuous but is more likely than a decrease in biodiversity, all other factors being controlled for.

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mikeash 3583 days ago
Typical double standard, your speculation is perfectly reasonable but the other guy's claims need scientific backing. Annoying, and not very convincing!
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James001 3583 days ago
You must have never delved too much into science then. There are certain claims that have been well established for so long that citations are no longer needed. For example, we don't need citations to state the order of colours in a rainbow. Likewise, I don't need a citation to state that plant biomass increases with a greater concentration of CO2. That's basic science, it's unequivocal and not controversial. On the other hand, the previous dude made wild speculation about increased CO2 causing increased soil depletion. I'm sorry if you don't see the difference. Not everyone is suited to being a scientist.
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mikeash 3582 days ago
Searching around, it looks like what you say is often the case, but is not guaranteed, and the full effects of increased CO2 concentration on real-world crops is still very much up in the air. For example:

https://www.mpg.de/6650626/carbon-dioxide-crop-yields

Sure doesn't look as simple as the order of colors in a rainbow to me.

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