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July
25, 2007 Scientists from
the Near-surface ozone
has doubled since 1850 due
to chemical emissions from vehicles, industrial processes, and the
burning of
forests. Dr Stephen Sitch, a climate impacts scientist at the Met
Office Hadley
Centre and lead author of the article, said: “Climate models
have largely ignored
atmospheric chemistry but in this research we have identified a cause
of
potentially increased warming with elevated levels of surface ozone
likely to
suppress plant growth.” Plants and soil
are currently slowing–down
global warming by storing about a quarter of human carbon dioxide
emissions,
but the new study suggests that this could be undermined by further
increases
in near-surface ozone. As a result more carbon dioxide would accumulate
in the
atmosphere and add to global warming. Co-author, Professor Cox
explains: “We
estimate that ozone effects on plants could double the importance of
ozone
increases in the lower atmosphere as a driver of climate change, so
policies to
limit increases in near-surface ozone must be seen as an even higher
priority."
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