Editor, Gazette-Journal:

A lie goes around the world six times while the truth is still putting its shoes on, said Mark Twain. When science creates myths, we are in trouble.

A group of Australian scientists claim seagrasses take out of circulation (sequester) atmospheric carbon dioxide on a long-term basis, calling it carbon capture and storage (CCS), an effective way to remove emissions responsible for global warming. The article, "Restoring Coastal Plants to Improve Global Carbon Storage: Reaping What We Sew," published in March 2011, makes no mention whatsoever of the basic fact that organic carbon (cellulose) in the grass is broken down and recycled back into the atmosphere.

It’s called the carbon cycle, described in "Introduction to the Bacteria," published in 1958 by McGraw Hill—nothing new. The cellulose in that very light, dry-rotted tree branch you picked up in your yard has been recycled the same as all green plants, including seagrasse...