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Role of Plants in Improving the Environment
Author(s) -
Waggoner Paul E.
Publication year - 1972
Publication title -
journal of environmental quality
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.888
H-Index - 171
eISSN - 1537-2537
pISSN - 0047-2425
DOI - 10.2134/jeq1972.00472425000100020004x
Subject(s) - acre , environmental science , pollutant , productivity , wilderness , air pollutants , environmental engineering , environmental protection , natural resource economics , agroforestry , air pollution , ecology , economics , biology , macroeconomics
Foliage, especially foliage that is well watered and rapidly taking in carbon dioxide, improves our environment in tangible ways as well as aesthetically. Properly arranged, foliage can shade us without stilling the breeze and thus balance our energy budgets comfortably. When the productivity of crops per acre is increased, this frees land for parks and wilderness. Plants can also heal scarred land and scavenge pollutants from waste. Finally, we have recently learned that foliage can take in air pollutants, and the estimated cleansing of the air is considerable.