Water has been a problem with vast areas of the planet lacking sufficient water to support agriculture.  In the future we expect water conservation will be a far more important reason for sequestering carbon dioxide because CO2 is not the cause of global warming, but it is the determinent on what plants can produce.

The blame for global warming is in the atmosphere.  It belongs to water vapor which was ignored by atmospheric physicists for 150 years because it is variable.  This will eventually be seen as the greatest science blunder of all time. 

Dry air climatology is nonsense because real air always has water vapor.  While we may never be able to bring water to many areas of the planet we may take genetically engineered plants to areas with spare supplies and grow crops with the available supply.  There is always some water in soil and an opportunity to modify plants to thrive on it.

Some pro man-caused global warming people now admit to the major role of water vapor but claim it is only present as “forced” by carbon dioxide and that CO2 must be present for water to evaporate.  Nonsense, if there were no carbon dioxide in the air water would evaporate even better than it does now.  To behave as the fanciful claim molecules would have to be under intelligent control.  Are these people saying God does it?

Doing Right Things For Wrong Reasons

Lawyers are fond of saying that juries usually get it right for wrong reasons. Water conservation will become the issue when the anthropogenic global warming hypothesis is dropped and plant physiology is better understood.  By then the benefits of SCAF and the scarcity of fresh water will drive SCAF to universal acceptance.  It is on that truth that we developed this concept and seek patent protection.  SCAF will remain valid for reasons other than those for which it will be initially instituted.

The online publication, “The Future Pundit” issue of 2/17/2004 has a statement by Dr. William Schlesinger, Professor of Biochemistry and Dean of the Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences.  He wrote: “One advantage the plants may have in dry years is that with more CO2 in the atmosphere the leaves do not have to open their pores as much to let in the CO2. This reduces water loss from evaporation and allows plants to grow in dry environments.  This explanation has been put forward to explain plant growth into the Negev desert in Israel.”  Following that lead we found the following by Randall Parker in “Engineering Environmental,” a professional publication.

“Rehovot, Israel — May 8, 2003 —  The Negev research station is the most arid site in a worldwide network (FluxNet) established by scientists to investigate carbon dioxide absorption by plants.  ….the Yatir (desert) forest is growing at a relatively quick pace, and is even expanding further into the desert.

Why would a forest grow so well on arid land, countering all expectations (“It wouldn’t have even been planted there had scientists been consulted,”) the answer, the team suggests, might be found in the way plants address one of their eternal dilemmas. Plants need carbon dioxide for photosynthesis, which leads to the production of sugars. But to obtain it, they must open pores in their leaves and consequently lose large quantities of water to evaporation. The plant must decide which it needs more: water or carbon dioxide. Yakir suggests that the 30 percent increase of atmospheric carbon dioxide since the start of the industrial revolution eases the plant’s dilemma. Under such conditions, the plant doesn’t have to fully open the pores for carbon dioxide to seep in – a relatively small opening is sufficient. Consequently, less water escapes the plant’s pores. This efficient water preservation technique keeps moisture in the ground, allowing forests to grow in areas that previously were too dry.”

Concept Confirmation

          This fits perfectly with what we have observed experimentally and found in the literature.  Where SCAF puts carbon dioxide to soil moisture the demand for water will be substantially reduced as transpiration falls in response to root borne carbon dioxide.

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