Through fertilizers, fossil fuels and agriculture, the planet’s nitrogen system has been in supercharge mode since the Industrial Revolution. This means more air pollution, burdened ecosystems and excess greenhouse gas emissions.

Scientists are working hard to combat the fallout, and it seems tiny chemical isotopes may come in with the assist.

Isotopes are like tiny barcodes that scientists use to track the source of all that nitrogen and where it ends up. Each isotope acts like a fingerprint that helps researchers determine which pollution comes from cars, factories, forests or soil.

The recent review published in Nitrogen Cycling shows that forests actively modify incoming nitrogen rather than simply letting it fall straight through.

It also shows plants may use more nitrate than we thought and that processing nitrogen takes up a large amount of plants’ energy.

By connecting climate models and isotope tracking, scientists aim to better predict how nitrogen pollution will impact our warming world, and how we might ultimately curb it.

More like this: A reforestation goldmine