by Matteo Cavallito<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
It is no secret, of course, that forest soil<\/strong> makes a crucial contribution to removing carbon from the atmosphere through the process of photosynthesis by plants. Far less known, however, is the weight of a factor capable of proving crucial in increasing the effectiveness of this process: the variety<\/strong> of tree species. This was revealed in a research<\/a> published these days in the journal Nature.<\/p>\n As plant diversity increases, the researchers claim, sequestration of the element can increase by more than 30 percent<\/strong>. The problem, however, stresses a statement<\/a> released by the authors, is that tree biodiversity is declining rapidly globally, “leading to the degradation of ecosystem function<\/strong>, including the function of soils.” In contrast, “Preserving the diversity of forests assures their productivity and can increase the accumulation of carbon and nitrogen in the soil, which helps to sustain soil fertility and mitigate global climate change.”<\/p>\n