Submitted by Anonymous on Wed, 05/04/2011 - 15:57
Forums
Carbon Balance in Warming and Drying Tundra

Hi! It's me Matt from 6 per. Since the world is heating up, will ice caps melt a little and become Tundras? Oh and I had trouble sending messages, That's why it took so long. The snow fence does build up alot of snow. If the permafrost melts and carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere, what would we do and could we trap the carbon dioxide?
I miss you alot and science is 25% as interesting when are not there.

Wed, 05/04/2011 - 17:12

John Wood

Good to hear from you, and I miss you guys a lot also. You have some pretty big questions. Some of the ice caps are already showing signs of melting. However, it's going to take a lot of time and much more melting to think about new tundra. We also have to consider the soil that is or isn't under all that ice. As far as the carbon dioxide increasing, the tundra and permafrost melting will also take a bit of time. That's why we are looking at ways to cut down on the carbon we release in to the atmosphere. Keeping the trees and plants growing, or planting new trees, and finding different energy sources that don't require burning carbon rich materials are some ways to reduce the carbon dioxide in the air. You may be able to think of some new ways to trap that carbon and use it or return it to the ground. I'm sure you are already thinking about it!Cheers,
Mr. Wood