By Natalia Lima / Source: Ecorazzi

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new study claims that if plants are not better preserved, humans could go extinct

A new study by the University of Georgia shows a gloomy future for the human race if plants are not better preserved.

Published in the ‘Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences’ journal, the study outlines how humans have been destroying the Earth’s plants and as a result, depleting the planet’s energy, which is essential to its survival.

“The Sun’s energy is stored in plants and fossil fuels but humans are draining energy much faster than it can be replenished,” said the study’s lead author and associate professor John Schramski.

According to the study, 2,000 years ago, the Earth had just over 1,000 billion tonnes of carbon in living biomass. Today, that number has dropped in half, with 10 percent of it being consumed in the last century.

The main culprits for the expedited consumption according to the study are deforestation and highly mechanized agriculture which have been growing in order to feed an increasing population more rapidly.

“If we do not reverse this trend, we will eventually reach a point where the biomass battery discharges to a level at which Earth can no longer sustain us,” explained Schramski.

The results of that severe depletion of biomass would be evident in the planet’s climate and would inevitably affect the humans living in it. Either the entire human race would go extinct or suffer a severe decline with the survivors having to return to being hunter-gatherers or simple horticulturalists.

“As the planet becomes less hospitable and more people depend on fewer available energy options, their standard of living and very survival will become increasingly vulnerable to fluctuations, such as droughts, disease epidemics and social unrest,” added Schramski.

The same consequences were listed in the last United Nations report on climate change, also urging nations to change their approach to how the planet is treated.

Similarly, the published study suggests that the only thing that can save humans from this gloomy fate would be awareness of how biomass is being depleted and an increased reliance on renewable sources of energy.

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