It was an intriguing idea put forward by Maurice Ku (1 April, p 19) that increasing the photosynthetic performance and yield of rice by 35 per cent would take more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and thus reduce global warming.
The question arises as to whether it is ethical to store this rice, with its sequestered carbon, rather than allowing people to eat it and hence respire the hard-earned carbon back into the atmosphere.
It is worrying how often this incomplete view of the carbon cycle is put forward as a way of reducing the atmospheric CO
However, having said that, high-yield rice could lead to a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions since less land would need to be used for paddy fields, which are strong sources of the powerful greenhouse gas methane.
I did rather like the idea of pumping rice pudding into exhausted oil wells and ...
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