Fertilize the plants to ...

Can nitrogen fertilizer be applied to plants to reduce global warming? Nutrients can be a way to make the solar energy coming down and warming the earth reflected back into the universe.

A high productivity pepper garden of Vietnam.Photo: Agro.gov.vn

Scott Ollinger, of the University of New Hampshire, Durham and colleagues measured nitrogen levels under forest canopy in 180 locations across the United States, taking samples of trees aged 15 to 500 years. They compared the data they obtained with reflectivity data - the amount of solar energy reflected from different regions - measured by satellites and data on the amount of carbon absorbed by the forest.

Ollinger said: 'Our main finding is that protein levels in the forest canopy are a good indicator of carbon dioxide absorption, and high-protein forests are always reflective. more solar radiation than low-protein forests. '

Since then the group of researchers has concluded: 'Fertilizing plants with nitrogen fertilizer, or more simply, growing high-protein plants (eg legumes) can contribute to the fight against change. climate (warming the earth). Theoretically, but more research is needed before spraying nitrogen from aircraft to forests'.

However, the relationship between nitrogen content and reflection is still a secret. Nitrogen can alter the structure or cellular properties of leaves, making them more shiny and reflecting more sun rays.

If there is indeed a correlation between the reflectivity of some plants and the amount of nitrogen contained in the leaves, then governments must have policies to develop these plants to take advantage of them.

Stimulating the growth of plants by applying nitrogen also has drawbacks. 'Increasing the amount of nitrogen in the soil also has a negative effect on the environment. A large amount of leaching goes into groundwater or into the air in the form of nitrous oxide, which is itself a 'greenhouse gas' that needs to be restricted.

Plants that retain protein are also plants that need plenty of water. Developing them also means drying up rivers and groundwater. 'Dryness is a major danger to agriculture,' says Ollinger.

Federico Magnani, Bologna University (Italy) also pursued this topic. He said: 'Fertilizing nitrogen for plants is something we must do in this century.' In 2007, Magnami proved that it is industrial pollution caused by cars and nitrogen fertilizers that make plants absorb more carbon. He added: 'It is important for us to fully understand the benefits, to thoroughly consider both the negative and positive effects of applying any measures, to determine good environmental policies. most for the next century '.

Magnani and his colleagues proposed to the European Union to extensively study the relationship between nitrogen fertilization and carbon sequestration. His team wants to target the effectiveness of applying nitrogen fertilizer on an international scale to forests and the ability to grow new forests in areas where nitrogen pollution from fertilization is a part of the ecosystem.