“CO2 is also a pollution fighter that reduces the harmful effects of ozone, nitrous oxides and other pollutants in the air, or too much nitrogen fertilizer in the soil.”

It’s amazing that minuscule bacteria can cause life-threatening diseases and infections – and miraculous that tiny doses of vaccines and antibiotics can safeguard us against these deadly scourges.

Equally astounding, trace amounts of selenium in our bodies protect us against the harmful effects of methylmercury. Just as incredible, this same element added to a manmade formula helps ensure that musk oxen calves survive their first year of life in an Alaskan wildlife conservation area where soils and thus forage are so deficient in selenium that their mothers’ milk cannot nourish them adequately.

It may thus not be too surprising that, at the planetary level, carbon dioxide is a miracle molecule for plants – and the “gas of life” for most living creatures on Earth.…