Forests and woodlands – absorbing carbon dioxide?
by Lewis, 4 September, 2020, 3 comments
Forests and woodlands are important in the global ecosystem; they have taken up some 20 to 30% of the carbon dioxide released from fossil fuels in recent times. It had been assumed that the dense and biodiverse tropical forest ecosystems (close to the equator) were particularly effective in ‘soaking up this carbon dioxide’. However, there is doubt that this will continue to be the case as forests shrink in size. Plus, recent work at the University of Birmingham (Dr Tom Pugh) has shown that where forests were re-growing, they took up large amounts of carbon partly because more carbon dioxide was available, but also as a result of the younger age of the trees. This ‘youthful’ carbon uptake was not associated with tropical areas, but with regenerating forests of more temperate regions. Read more...
