Carbon dioxide can negatively affect carbon-based lifeforms | Fact check

Eleanor McCrary, USA TODAY
Updated ·3 min read
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The claim: Carbon is not harmful because all life on Earth is carbon-based

A May 24 Facebook post (direct link, archive link) shows a man speaking in front of a large compost pile.

"Behind me is a big steaming pile of carbon that’s currently composting and releasing massive amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere," he says. "All life on Earth is carbon-based and I spend the majority of time on the farm trying to increase my carbon footprint, which simply means increasing all life."

At the end of the video, the speaker says, "There’s plenty of problems in the world and carbon definitely isn’t one of them."

It was shared over 22,000 times in one week. The video was originally shared on TikTok on March 16 where it was liked over 39,000 times.

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Our rating: False

Carbon is a vital part of life on Earth, experts told USA TODAY. However, too much carbon, especially in the form of carbon dioxide, can have negative effects on carbon-based organisms, such as plants, animals and humans.

Excess carbon can harm carbon-based life

Carbon is one of the building blocks of life on Earth, Jared Gregory Ali, director of the University of Pennsylvania's Center for Chemical Ecology, told USA TODAY. But he said that doesn't mean the Earth can absorb infinite amounts without experiencing negative effects.

He explained that too much carbon dioxide in the environment could disrupt the carbon cycle, which is the natural movement of carbon in and out of reservoirs on Earth. This movement can happen through photosynthesis, burning fossil fuels or even breathing, according to National Geographic.

"This is a natural part of our life cycle," Ali said. "What isn’t natural is the burning of energy stored in reserves on our planet that wouldn’t be released at the rate they are, that are throwing our planet cycles off a bit. The world will balance out that shift, but it has terrible, terrible consequences for life as we know it."

Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas, which means high levels of it can influence climate. This is illustrated by the frequency of record-breaking heat events worldwide in recent years, said James Hicks, a physiologist at the University of California Irvine, in an email to USA TODAY.

Fact check: Scientists say carbon dioxide levels affect the climate

"Heat events do impact many organisms, including humans," Hicks said. "In addition, rising CO2 dissolves in the oceans and other bodies of water. CO2 reacts with water to form carbonic acid and ultimately alters the pH. These pH changes, again, are relatively small but can negatively impact some marine organisms, mainly invertebrates."

Climate change, which is driven in part by carbon dioxide, has already led to illness and death from extreme weather events, the disruption of food systems and the increase of diseases and mental health issues, according to the World Health Organization.

USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the post for comment and the user could not provide sufficient evidence to support the claim.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Viral video misrepresents the dangers of excess CO2 | Fact check