eli5: what would happen if we cleaned up all the carbon on earth would it become global cooling?

Question

eli5: what would happen if we cleaned up all the carbon on earth would it become global cooling?

In: Planetary Science

Answer 1

All carbon removed from Earth? Considering that life on Earth is carbon-based, you’re basically erasing all life.

But since you’re referring to global cooling I figure you mean removing CO2 from the atmosphere.

If all CO2 were removed from the atmosphere, it would be a major problem. Earth’s climate would cool, for one thing. But there would be other problems. The worst and most immediate problem is that plant life would die.

Currently, Earth’s atmosphere is about 420 parts per million (PPM) CO2. Preindustrial CO2 levels were about 280 ppm. Plants need at least 150 ppm for photosynthesis to work.

CO2 naturally reacts with water to form carbonic acid. Without CO2, bodies of water would become more basic, which would be problematic for some sensitive organisms.