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NASA data has shown that plant growth increases in large areas where intensification of agriculture has occurred.
Mueller, of the University of Maryland in College Park (now at the Biodiversity and Climate Research Center in Frankfurt) teamed up with university and NASA colleagues to find out. Their new analysis shows that on a global scale, the presence of people corresponds to more plant productivity, or growth.
Specifically, populated areas that have undergone intensive land use showed increasing plant greenness and productivity during the study period from 1981 to 2010.
The researchers found that the magnitude of changes in plant growth over the 29-year study period was different depending on the size of nearby population. Near areas defined as dense settlements with about 500 people per square kilometer the vegetation index increased by 4.3 percent. That's less than near villages, where the vegetation index increased by almost 6 percent. "More intensive agriculture occurs in these rural areas", Tucker added.
In short, areas with a human footprint have seen plant productivity increase. In contrast, areas with a minimal human footprint rangelands and wildlands saw close to no change.
(Score: 2, Interesting) by TestablePredictions on Thursday July 03 2014, @08:04PM
I think another interesting angle to consider is: what effect does human settlement have on populations of local herbivores? If our presence is somewhat lowering those populations, it could be part of the explanation for increased plant populations / hardiness.
Could insecticide use be benefiting bystander vegetation? How spatially confined is the effect of lowering insect populations?
(Score: 2) by mhajicek on Thursday July 03 2014, @11:32PM
Insightful.
The spacelike surfaces of time foliations can have a cusp at the surface of discontinuity. - P. Hajicek