Rising CO2 levels have indeed contributed to a phenomenon known as “global greening,” where satellite observations show increased vegetation cover and plant growth across much of the planet.

This is often referred to as the CO2 fertilization effect, where higher atmospheric carbon dioxide enhances photosynthesis in many plants (particularly C3 plants like trees, wheat, and rice), allowing them to grow faster, produce more leaves, and use water more efficiently.

NASA-led studies, based on satellite data from instruments like MODIS and AVHRR, have documented this trend since the 1980s.

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From No Trick Zone

By Kenneth Richard 

Decades of satellite data confirm the globe has been substantially greening – as defined by rising Leaf Area Index (LAI) values – since the 1980s.

The CO2 fertilization effect (CFE) enhances plant productivity via improved light use efficiency and water use efficiency. In other words, with elevated CO2, photosynthesis rates are not as hampered as they would be when sunlight and water availability are limited.

A new study indicates India is the second largest contributor to global greening, and that CFE has driven a “substantial expansion of global green cover over the last two decades.”

The authors found the CFE has “nearly doubled” the trend values in net primary production [NPP] across India relative to the trend values when the CFE is not considered.

Interestingly, despite the elevated CO2, much of India has been cooling since 2000. While the southern peninsula and parts of eastern India have been warming this century, “central and northwestern regions experienced a cooling trend.”

It should be noted that India’s annual mean non-warming trend has been ongoing since 1950 (as shown in Sanjay et al., 2020).