Those dirty plants


New findings about to be published in Nature
This one caught me by surprise.

German scientists have discovered a new source of methane, a greenhouse gas that is second only to carbon dioxide in its impact on climate change.

The culprits are plants.

They produce about 10 to 30 percent of the annual methane found in the atmosphere, according to researchers at the Max-Planck Institute for Nuclear Physics in Heidelberg, Germany.

The scientists measured the amount of methane released by plants in controlled experiments. They found it increases with rising temperatures and exposure to sunlight.

"Significant methane emissions from both intact plants and detached leaves were observed ... in the laboratory and in the field," Dr Frank Keppler and his team said in a report in the journal Nature.

Methane, which is produced by city rubbish dumps, coal mining, flatulent animals, rice cultivation and peat bogs, is one of the most potent greenhouse gases in terms of its ability to trap heat.

Makes sense when you think about it though. Anyone who has had to muck out a stall or clean out a pasture can tell you about methane. Or had to turn over a too-ripe compost pile.

Hat tip to Tammy Bruce.

— NeoWayland

Posted: Thu - January 12, 2006 at 04:28 AM  Tag


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