Research at The Open University, funded by the Natural Environment Research Council, suggests that acid rain from atmospheric pollution in China could be reducing the production of methane from rice fields by up to 24%. There is a possibility that "the sulfate component of acid rain may actually boost rice yields... reducing a source of food for the methane producing micro-organisms that live in the soil." This process also affects natural wetlands, which are another source of methane. So does this mean that if China stopped building coal-fired power stations - a source of acid rain - there would be higher levels of methane contributing to global warming?
Just another example of how difficult it is to understand ecological processes and their impacts on climate. Some might interpret this as a reason to proceed cautiously in addressing climate change, but I would suggest that the complications make it all the more important to move quickly, since there could well be many more "hidden" processes that will stymie our efforts.
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