When Carbon Dioxide (CO₂) gases collect in the upper atmosphere they absorb sunlight; and when solar radiation invariably bounces off the earth’s surface it is “captured” or “held” by the accumulated CO₂; the effect is called Global Warming.  Normally, such radiation would simply escape into space — but because CO₂ pollutants hang around from a few years to several centuries the heat from the sun is “trapped” and held in-place which causes the planet to gradually get warmer － a condition best known as the “greenhouse effect”.   Historically, in the United States, Coal-burning Electric Power Plants have been the biggest CO₂ polluters; producing about two (2) billion tons every year.  However, it should be noted recent data shows a small decline in CO₂ emissions by US Electric Power Plants. Declines in emissions are due primarily to changes in the mix of fuels used in electricity generation.  

On the other hand the country’s second-largest source of CO₂ pollution remains the transportation sector, which continues to pump an additional 1.7 billion tons of CO₂ into the upper atmosphere each year.

Global Warming theorists have long held that Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR), or it’s reduction, is an absolute necessity and a fight folks of Earth simply cannot afford to lose.

And too, scientist’s have long known that plants extract carbon dioxide from the air and use it in the photosynthesis process to feed themselves. Once carbon dioxide enters the leaves of plants, a second process begins (with the help of sunlight and water): The conversion or release of Oxygen, into the surrounding atmosphere.  

Not all folks realize it, but pine tree needles are actually a type of leaf. Technically, they’re a lot like other tree leaves, for they too capture sunlight, “breathe in” carbon dioxide, and “breathe out” oxygen — all the while supplying the tree with nutrients and providing fresh air for all of us to breath.

Sooo, do simple pine needles have anything to do with ridding us of excessive amounts of trapped CO₂? Well, to fit into this puzzle, it’s critical to recognize that pine tree needles naturally retain water for a longer time-period than typical “broad-based” tree leaves do. And second, a typical pine needle plucked or pulled from a health tree and then “preserved” within the confines of a vacuum within a 48 hour time period, retains its ability to convert CO₂ to Oxygen for a minimum of several months!  Even better, a “preserved” Foxtail Pine (Pinus balfouriana －a rare pine species that only grows in Northern California) needle has shown the capability of converting CO₂ to Oxygen for up to a full year after being removed from a healthy tree!   

On a related note, The National Academy of Sciences determined years ago that tiny Biogenic particles are formed and emitted into the atmosphere from most pine tree “emissions”. Such discharges are known to cause negative health effects to folks who breath the oxygen resulting from air “cranked out” by ever green trees in general. However, the oxygen formulated by the extremely rare Foxtail Pine is among only two exceptions that do not display such negative results. The second is the recently discovered tree, universally referred to as the Wollemi Pine (Wollemia nobilis); even-though it’s not a true member of the pine family. Regardless, until 1994, the Wollemi Pine was thought to be totally extinct. But, a tiny population was found growing within the Wollemi National Park in New South Wales inside a remote series of narrow, steep-sided sandstone gorges just over 93 miles (150 km) north-west of Sydney, Australia. Otherwise, the most recent known fossil of the tree dates back some two (2) million years and was found in Tasmania, an isolated island state off Australia’s southern coast. Now-then, how might the “lowly” pine needle help with the elimination of the unwanted CO₂ build up?  

Amazingly, the the timely “dumping” of 5,000 tons of “preserved” Foxtail Pine needles approximately 200 feet above known CO₂ concentrations at sunrise proved their value. The basics of gravity then followed its natural course when millions of the light weight pine needles slowly drifted through the targeted CO₂ area. Results have shown success far beyond the anticipated expectation and is currently an ongoing multi-million Dollar NASA project that has the full support of Republicans and Democrats in the US Congress.  

“We’re not out of the woods yet”, said  the Freshman Republican Senate Majority Leader Dave Forgone of Alaska”. (you may recall Forgone recently withdrew as the Republican Presidential candidate’s VP pick two weeks after the Republican Convention － alluding only to “personal disagreements” as his grounds).  

Otherwise, Forgone made the following comment about the Foxtail Pine needle project: “This will require a diligent 10-year effort; otherwise, we may jeopardize the future of the Foxtail Pine’s continued growth and or well-being”.   

However, it is noteworthy that the projects funding approval required a rare but successful Presidential Veto Over-ride by both houses of the US Congress.  

In fact, the highly publicized success has been repeatedly touted as a blatant example of Fake News by the US President who still insists that Global Warming is an absolute and complete hoax.