Ocean phytoplankton and algae produce 70-80% of the earths atmospheric oxygen. Why is tree conservation for oxygen so popular over ocean conservation then?

Question

Ocean phytoplankton and algae produce 70-80% of the earths atmospheric oxygen. Why is tree conservation for oxygen so popular over ocean conservation then?

In: Biology

Answer 1

In environmental biology trees are sort of a sentinel category. If we turned a giant forest into a parking lot, you’d notice and care. But you might not as easily notice the loss of all the other critters that depend on that forest. Birds, small animals, other plants, etc.

Plus being long lived, trees sequester a lot of carbon for decades. And when they die and decay, some of that carbon remains in the soil for centuries.