Native trees may survive climate change

SYDNEY, Sept. 17 (UPI) -- Australian researchers said hardy eucalyptus trees exposed to high levels of carbon dioxide grow larger and use less water.

University of Western Sydney researchers have been studying gum trees housed under giant climate-controlled tents to predict the impact of global warming on the Australian bush over the next century, the university said. The findings suggest eucalyptus trees will survive and perhaps even prosper in the new environment, The Sydney Morning Herald reported Wednesday.

"The trees are basically taking up more carbon and using up to 25 percent less water," researcher David Tissue told the newspaper. "Hopefully this could have important implications for the use of plantation timber and the way carbon sequestration is accounted."