When the stomata close, CO2 levels drop and oxygen (O2) levels increase.
<h3>What are its implications?</h3>
Carbon dioxide in the air spaces in the leaf decreases, oxygen in the air spaces in the leaf increases.
This imbalance in CO2/O2 results in an efficiency decrease because oxygen is now being fixed by enzyme (RuBisCO) to that five-carbon compound instead of carbon dioxide.
This is called photorespiration which is a wasteful process.
