Pursuing Carbon Neutrality

There are two ways a corporation or general society could reach "net zero" with current emissions like carbon: either the emissions are reduced or they are counteracted.  According to present paradigm, nature's carbon sponges include plants, trees in particular because of their longevity and size, and phytoplankton.  Both land-based vegetation and phytoplankton, for the latter are microscopic plants that are adrift in the ocean, engage in photosynthesis, through which the carbon is removed from carbon dioxide to be stored in the organism.  To better neutralize the warming consequences of carbon dioxide from fossil fuel usage, both of these kinds of absorbers would need to be utilized.  One likely hears more about how trees can help with climate change of human origin.

As far as scientific evidence points to, yes, they are useful for this end.  The role of phytoplankton is still larger.  With more oceanic water than land, phytoplankton in the sunlight zone (the top 200 meters of the sea) uses the same process as trees over a broader area.  Perhaps this emphasis on trees is because there is more a random person can likely do to preserve or plant trees than to directly protect phytoplankton.  Minimizing or collecting marine pollution is one way to safeguard phytoplankton, rather than release plastics that interfere with photosynthesis and simply remain in the water for extended periods (and get infested by the creatures therein).  Diminishing carbon dioxide or absorbing it also helps phytoplankton since increased heat can set in motion a chain that kills them.  Even so, trees are visible for many in everyday life, unlike phytoplankton.

Renewable energy sources like solar and wind power are another way to improve the carbon dioxide levels of the atmosphere, since they do not release carbon--though we cannot safely, securely rely on renewable energy exclusively [1].  Burning fewer fossil fuels spews less carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, which in turn gives plants on land and in the tropic zone of the sea fewer emissions to counteract, and renewable sources do not contribute further to the issue; they are sources of clean energy.  In conjunction, promoting healthy trees and phytoplankton, curtailing general pollution, and using more renewable energy sources when possible is the best way to undo damaging buildup of excess greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide.

Net zero for carbon emissions does not mean that there is no carbon being emitted, but that there are balancing measures that can be taken simultaneously, even as carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere can be lessened.  Beyond natural carbon sinks like phytoplankton, there is also the possibility of genetically modifying plants to store more of this substance, such as by living longer or growing larger (for trees).  There are indeed accessible ways to achieve carbon neutrality in spite of apathy from some and active exploitation of the natural world by others.  The correlations between plants of various kinds and carbon absorption provide a great avenue to (in part) fight any global warming perpetuated by modern civilization.

[1].  https://thechristianrationalist.blogspot.com/2022/10/renewable-energy.html