[moneypenny]

This is a fabulous technology, but we shouldn't get carried away. Firstly, this is another disruption of the world's water cycle, which we have already managed to a considerable degree, and if we manage atmospheric water extraction on a massive scale, we will wreak havoc with the climate (again).

Note, I said: if we do this on a massive scale.

[ars]

And even if you do it on a massive scale nothing at all will happen.

We have these enormous oceans on earth, and if the air gets dry more water will simply evaporate from the ocean. It takes about a month for air to completely circle the globe - and a whole lot less than that for air from any particular place on earth to reach the ocean.

So even if you completely dry out air in one spot it'll be replenished within a day or two at most. Meaning that overall you never will actually dry out the air.

And remember that on a global basis water is more or less never created or destroyed. So any water you capture from the air, will just end up right back in the air.

You water a plant and it converts the water to hydrocarbons, those hydrocarbons are then eaten, and are "burned" and are converted right back into water.

Same for the water you drink - it's only in your system temporarily, it will end up in the environment again later.