The Importance of Trees in Halting Global Warming
Most people have heard that planting a tree is beneficial to the ecology, but not everyone has heard why. To state the importance of trees in having a healthy atmosphere simply, trees store carbon in solid form, much of which they remove from the atmosphere.
Trees, as indeed all plants, acquire carbon for growth from the air, taking in carbon dioxide molecules. Once the carbon is removed, the oxygen is released back into the atmosphere. This process not only removes a greenhouse gas, but replenishes the atmospheric oxygen so vital to human and animal life.
Once a tree has assimilated carbon, much of the carbon becomes part of the woody parts, while some goes into the leaves. The carbon in the leaves and twigs decompose after they fall. Some of the carbon from the fallen parts of a tree enrich the earth, and become fertile soil for other vegetation, but some does escape back to the atmosphere as a greenhouse gas.
Tags: atmospheric oxygen, carbon dioxide content, cutting down forests, fertile soil, greenhouse gas, importance of trees, lush vegetation, planting a tree, store carbon, usable lumberRelated posts
Accelerated Examination for Green Patents
Patent applications for inventions that benefit the environment qualify for special treatment. Because of the urgent need for green innovations that address our growing energy needs and the dangers of greenhouse gas emissions, green applications can be examined and patented sooner. The goal is to encourage environmentally beneficial innovation by accelerating the granting of green patents, which in turn increases the value of those inventions.
Most patent applications languish in a queue at the patent office for years after they are filed. However green technology patent applications can made special, and skip the queue entirely. Being made special means that applications are examined soon after they are filed. Other patent applications must wait two to four years before they receive a first action. This delay diminishes the value of a patent because the inventor is unable to protect her invention while it waits to be examined. In addition, competitors may begin practicing the invention and learn implementation strategies that will allow them to move beyond the invention.
Tags: green technology, greenhouse gas emissions, implementation strategies, inventions, inventors, patent applications, patent examiners, patent office, technology patent, technology patents