The IPCC FAQ [1] states that this was known for decades: > For decades, about half of the carbon dioxide (CO2) that human activities have emitted to the atmo

The IPCC FAQ [1] states that this was known for decades: > For decades, about half of the carbon dioxide (CO2) that human activities have emitted to the atmosphere has been taken up by natural carbon sinks in vegetation, soils and oceans. [...] On land, it is mainly the vegetation that captures CO2 from the atmosphere through plant photosynthesis, which ultimately accumulates both in vegetation and soils. As more CO2 accumulates in the atmosphere, plant carbon capture increases through the CO2 fertilization effect in regions where plant growth is not limited by, for instance, nutrient availability. Climate change affects the processes responsible for the uptake and release of CO2 on land in multiple ways. Land CO2 uptake is generally increased by longer growing seasons due to global warming in cold regions and by nitrogen deposition in nitrogen-limited regions. Bottom line: the Earth is getting greener, but not fast enough to keep up with our increased emissions. [1] https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg1/downloads/faqs/IPCC_AR6_WGI_FAQ_Chapter_05.pdf https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg1/downloads/faqs/IPCC_AR6_W...