By Gregory Wrightstone

As the love affair with so-called green energy cools and “net zero” commitments to eliminate “carbon emissions” wane, we see glimmers of acknowledgment for the benefits of carbon dioxide. That’s right: More people are beginning to understand that the gas – widely demonized as a pollutant endangering Earth with excessive heat – is a life-giving substance needed in greater amounts.

U.S. voters know that President-elect Donald Trump has declared the Green New Deal a “scam” and promises to return common sense to environmental regulations and energy development. His return to office rests partly on that pledge.

In Europe, German politicians whose green fetish has produced economic decline face serious electoral challenges. And developing countries like India ignore “decarbonization” promises to aggressively develop coal mines and import more of the fuel to spur growth and eradicate poverty.

Less frequently reported is the story of carbon dioxide emissions greening the Earth and boosting crop production. Educating the public on the benefits of carbon dioxide is the mission of the CO₂ Coalition, which I lead. We sponsor speakers and publish scientifically-based materials for adults and children. Much of the information is about the role of CO₂ as a beneficial greenhouse gas in moderating the extremes between daytime and nighttime temperatures and as a photosynthetic plant food.

“Fossil Fuels Are the Greenest Energy Sources” by Dr. Indur Goklany is an example of our work. Did you know that up to 50% of the globe has experienced an increase in vegetation and that 70% of the greening is attributed to plant fertilization by carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels? Or that nearly 200,000 square kilometers of the southern Sahara have been converted to a lush grassland from desert?

Few have heard that doubling atmospheric CO₂ from its current concentration of 420 ppm would significantly increase agricultural productivity and have little effect on the climate.

It appears that some of this knowledge has reached Canada because Alberta’s ruling Unified Conservative Party (UCP) recently approved a resolution that promotes the salutary effects of CO₂ and endorses an outright rejection of the national government’s net zero policy.

“It is estimated that (atmospheric) CO₂ levels need to be above 150 ppm (parts per million) to ensure the survival of plant life,” says the proposal for a resolution eventually adopted by the party. “The Earth needs more CO₂ to support life and to increase plant yields, both of which will contribute to the health and prosperity of all Albertans.”

The UCP calls for abandoning CO₂’s designation as a pollutant and for recognizing the gas as “a foundational nutrient for all life on Earth.”

The UCP’s action was not well received by the likes of DeSmog, an online platform of climate alarmists, which called the party’s resolution “a brazen display of climate science denial that harkens back to the 1990s fossil fuel industry playbook.”

DeSmog reported that the UCP had credited the “notorious” CO₂ Coalition as its source of information – much to our gratification.

Except for the politically connected in the climate industrial complex, the carbon footprint phobia of recent years is a threat to everybody’s economic wellbeing. But it is a direct assault on a place like Alberta.

Perhaps second only to the Canadian Rockies, the most distinguishing natural resource of the western province is its huge deposit of oil sands – the world’s fourth largest proven reserve of “black gold.” Employing nearly 140,000 people and generating $17 billion in royalties, the oil industry is valued by Albertans.

“The problem is net zero has become a shorthand for ‘leave it in the ground,’” says Alberta Premier Danielle Smith. She plans to fight “the federal government and a coalition of extreme environmentalists who want to stop the production of oil and gas altogether.”

It is a good day when we find ourselves on the side of people fighting for the freedom to prosper as they contribute to the atmospheric store of carbon dioxide that enriches ecosystems and engenders life.

To paraphrase Donald Trump: Let’s make CO₂ great again.

This commentary was first published at American Greatness on November 15, 2024.

Gregory Wrightstone is a geologist; executive director of the CO₂ Coalition, Fairfax, Va.; author of “Inconvenient Facts: The Science That Al Gore Doesn’t Want You to Know” and “A Very Convenient Warming: How modest warming and more CO2 are benefiting humanity.