[North Carolina] Researchers working at a Duke University outdoor test facility found that loblolly pines growing under carbon-dioxide levels mimicking those predicted for the year 2050 — roughly one and a half times today’s levels — fared somewhat better during and after a major ice storm that hit the area than did loblollies growing under current concentrations of the gas. Overall, the researchers found that about 20 percent of the trees in plots “treated” with carbon dioxide were damaged, compared with 29 percent of the trees in control plots. Tree tops broken off by the ice in the treated plots also tended to be shorter in length. In the growing season following the storm, trees in the treated plots recovered better since they had suffered less damage, the scientists found.

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