How Plants Cool the Planet
When it's HOT, HOT, HOT grab some cool near a wetland
We love this short video below by Jimi Sol explaining how healthy, intact ecosystems are like organs of our living planet. The plants in small remnants of so-called “marginal land” - like aspen bluffs, wetlands and grasslands - contribute to cooling the air we all breathe.
For many of us, it’s been an unseasonably hot summer - but “ABRACADABRA”, the air around a wetland “will be cooler by 1 to 3 degrees celsius than the agricultural land around it”.*
Though it feels kind of magical, it really isn’t. Leaves and bacteria are working together!
The plants transpire water vapour, then bacteria hop a ride on the vapour as it rises up into the atmosphere. Water vapour then uses the surface of the bacteria, condensing into liquid droplets to create clouds more quickly. Without the plants, the water vapour would form a haze keeping heat in, but clouds have a cooling effect.
The clouds that form above intact ecosystems also make rain which contributes the plant growth, replenishes aquifers, and feeds springs.
These ecosystems are like sponges, storing water, helping to prevent flooding, storing carbon and building soil.
Just plant trees or crops? Planting trees and crops does not replace the healthy intact biodiverse ecosystems that are being removed. We hope you enjoy how this video illustrates what is happening. Stay cool and enjoy your summer. Be sure to leave us a comment :-) cause you know we love to hear from you.
Dr. Shari Clare, “Does Drainage Pay?” Prairie Conservation Action Plan, March 9, 2023. The degree of coolness depends on the density of the wetland.
Very informative. We definitely need to preserve the trees and wetlands we already have.
Great video!