Current Science

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Trees are referred to as the lungs of the earth for their oxygen releasing potential, via photosynthesis. Air quality in urban areas has deteriorated and it is impacting the well-being of human life. The oxygen spa or artificial oxygen environment is portrayed as an alternative to air pollution. Against this backdrop, there are voices supporting to increase the tree cover in urban areas, thereby increasing oxygen availability. Increasing tree numbers to remove air pollutants is a logical argument, but improving the air quality by increasing the oxygen concentration by growing more trees needs introspection. Thus the question – How much oxygen is produced by different tree species and how to quantify it? According to atmospheric researchers the oxygen concentration of the atmosphere has not changed for quite a long time. Also, oxygen production from the terrestrial ecosystems is less compared to the marine and aquatic ecosystems. Moreover, there are numerous benefits from urban trees or urban greenspaces, so do we really need to worry about oxygen production or release from urban trees?
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