Combat Carbon Atmospheric Levels With Trees

Tesla posted an article on their Facebook page about Carbon Dioxde (CO₂) emissions passing the 400PPM mark, of which they then followed it up with a battery storage post. News flash, batteries don’t store CO₂. Tree’s do. We should plant more trees.

As seen in the graphic from NASA above, tree’s should be planted in area’s where the red color is darkest. This is where we’ll have the biggest impact.

We as a society have sourced wood from tree’s for centuries. Sadly, now that our climate is changing, rain doesn’t fall as often in the forests we have mowed down. Just look at California’s Sierra Nevada’s that have 66 million dead trees!

In Indonesia, the government is burning rain forests to the ground. Taking away vital producers of oxygen, creating large quantities of carbon dioxide and smoke particulate.

Sadly, this smoke has a detrimental effect on those down wind, such as children who now suffer from asthma from breathing smoke filled air.

International reduction in CO₂ emissions

61 of 197 countries have signed the United Nations Paris Agreement, meant to reduce industrial CO₂ emissions. This accounts for 47.79% of global greenhouse gas (carbon dioxide) emission. But as homeowners, we can do our part, too.

You have the power to take action

If we are so concerned about these growing carbon dioxide levels, then we should take action now to work to reduce it.

How does a tree store carbon dioxide and produce oxygen? Photosynthesis.

Photosynthesis is an extremely complex process. In its simplest form, this important reaction convert CO₂ [carbon dioxide] and H₂O [water] plus energy [sunlight] into O₂ [oxygen] and (C₆H₁₂O₆) [glucose]. The oxygen goes into the air you breathe.

“A single mature tree can absorb carbon dioxide at a rate of 48 lbs./year and release enough oxygen back into the atmosphere to support 2 human beings.”
– McAliney, Mike. Arguments for Land Conservation: Documentation and Information Sources for Land Resources Protection, Trust for Public Land, Sacramento, CA, December, 1993

Planting trees on our properties that we won’t want to “move” in a couple of years and watering them with a source of water that we don’t depend on for drinking. Yes, this means watering trees with recycled water. 🙂

UC Davis performed a study that was published in 2005 which analyzed hundreds of species of plants and trees that can withstand the salts in recycled water. I took that data, attached photos to it and put it in a sort-able table. That became a series of posts that were made available last year.

If you feel strongly about reducing Carbon Dioxide (CO₂) in the atmosphere, do something about it. Go plant a tree.

The tree’s listed in the table below will grow well with recycled water irrigation and will work to remove carbon dioxide from the air. A win-win for our environment.

Botanical name	Common name	Tolerance to salt spray	Tolerance to soil salinity	Photo of Plants
Araucaria heterophylla (Salisb.)	Norfolk Island Pine	Highly Tolerant	Tolerant
Coccoloba uvifera L.	Sea Grape	Highly Tolerant	Tolerant
Ficus carica L.	Edible Fig	Tolerant	Tolerant
Forsythia x intermedia Zabel	Forsythia	Tolerant	Tolerant
Grevillea robusta Cunn.	Silk Oak	Highly Tolerant	Tolerant
Juniperus silicicola Bail.	Southern Red Cedar	Highly Tolerant	Tolerant
Juniperus virginiana L.	Skyrocket Juniper	Highly Tolerant	Tolerant
Manilkara zapota	Sapodilla	Tolerant	Tolerant
Pinus cembroides Zucc.	Mexican Pinon Pine	Highly Tolerant	Tolerant
Pinus clausa Vasey	Sand Pine	Highly Tolerant	Tolerant
Plumeria spp. L.	Frangipani	Tolerant	Tolerant
Quercus agrifolia Nee	Coast Live Oak	Tolerant	Tolerant
Quercus virginiana Mill.	Live Oak	Highly Tolerant	Tolerant
Sapium sebiferum Roxb.	Chinese Tallow Tree	Highly Tolerant	Tolerant

There are 14 tree’s in this list, they will grow well with recycled water.

In Egypt, Germans and Egyptians have learned by irrigating pine and eucalyptus trees in the desert with recycled water, they will grow 4 time as fast. Hence, we should do the same.