The Green Revolution and Higher Crop Yields Caused CO2 to Increase Drastically

It turns out that our world could be altered by the so-called "Green Revolution." Scientists have found that the intense farming practices used are powerful enough to alter Earth's atmosphere at an ever-increasing rate, boosting carbon dioxide by about 15 percent over the past five decades.

"What we are seeing is the effect of the Green Revolution on Earth's metabolism," said Ning Zeng, one of the researchers, in a news release. "Changes in the way we manage the land can literally alter the breathing of the biosphere."

Since the 1950s, scientists have known that carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere hit an annual low during late summer and early fall in the Northern Hemisphere. As plants hit their maximum growth, the atmosphere's carbon dioxide level falls in spring and summer. In the autumn, though, atmosphere carbon dioxide levels rapidly increase as plants die and release their carbon.

In order to better understand these trends, the scientists examined historic observations taken continuously since 1958. The data showed an obvious increase in the atmosphere's overall level of carbon dioxide. Yet between 1961 and 2010, this seasonal variation became even more extreme; carbon dioxide levels are about 6 parts per million higher in the Northern Hemisphere's winter than in summer.

Within the time period, the amount of land planted with major crops grew by 20 percent, but crop production tripled. In other words, the Green Revolution began. The findings reveal that this improved farming methods not only led to an increase in crop productivity, but also led to an increase in plants' season growth and decay and, consequently, the levels of carbon dioxide.

The findings reveal that the Green Revolution has had massive impacts on our world's atmosphere. That said, there are still many unknowns; the Green Revolution has not affected all parts of the world equally and there isn't enough detailed information about changing farming practices over the past 50 years. What this new study does show, though, is that humans are able to modify their environment to the extreme and, moving forward, farmers should be aware of how farming practices can impact the atmosphere.

The findings are published in the journal Nature.