{"id":767,"date":"2021-03-23T09:39:40","date_gmt":"2021-03-23T09:39:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatetransform.com\/?p=767"},"modified":"2022-07-01T15:34:09","modified_gmt":"2022-07-01T15:34:09","slug":"how-much-co2-does-a-tree-absorb","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatetransform.com\/how-much-co2-does-a-tree-absorb\/","title":{"rendered":"How Much CO2 Does a Tree Absorb?"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n
‘How much carbon dioxide (CO2) does a tree absorb?’ is a fundamental question to address in the fight against climate change. Climate model scenarios indicate that we need to remove billions of tons of CO2 from the atmosphere. They also demonstrate that we need to significantly reduce our emissions to prevent global warming exceeding 2\u00b0C.<\/span>1<\/sup><\/a><\/span> Trees are a central nature-based solution to this problem because they naturally absorb carbon and can store it for centuries.<\/span>2<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n We need trees to absorb carbon to reduce the atmospheric CO2 concentration. Trees pull the element directly out of the air and use it to make food via photosynthesis. They also produce oxygen in the process. This is key to preventing climate change because carbon dioxide is a contributor to global warming.<\/span>3<\/sup><\/a><\/span>\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Greenhouse gases, such as CO2, prevent heat from escaping from Earth in a process known as the greenhouse effect.<\/span>4<\/sup><\/a><\/span> This helps to raise the planet\u2019s overall temperature. Humans have increased the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere by 47 per cent since the Industrial Revolution by burning fossil fuels.<\/span>5<\/sup><\/a><\/span> It is now at its highest level for at least 800,000 years.<\/span>6<\/sup><\/a><\/span> Every decade, anthropogenic planetary warming increases at 0.2\u00b0C due to past and ongoing emissions in the atmosphere.<\/span>7<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is unequivocal that a global rise of temperature 2\u00b0C above pre-industrial levels would be disastrous for our planet.<\/span>8<\/sup><\/a><\/span> It is clear that if human activities producing greenhouse gases continue at the current rate, 1.5\u00b0C of warming is likely to be reached between 2030 and 2052.<\/span>9<\/sup><\/a><\/span> 196 Parties representing the majority of the world\u2019s nations agreed to limit global warming to well below 2\u00b0C by signing the Paris Climate Agreement in 2015.<\/span>10<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n The amount of CO2 a tree absorbs in a day varies between different species.<\/span>11<\/sup><\/a><\/span> Saplings also absorb much less carbon compared to older trees. However, on average, a mature tree pulls about 21 kilograms of CO2<\/a> per year from the atmosphere.<\/span>12<\/sup><\/a><\/span> Over a typical lifetime of 100 years, a single tree will absorb a tonne of greenhouse gas.<\/span>13<\/sup><\/a><\/span> One acre of forest can therefore offset twice the CO2 produced by the average car\u2019s mileage.<\/span>14<\/sup><\/a><\/span>\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Trees are one of the most powerful weapons we have to combat global warming. They are one of the cheapest and most efficient tools for reducing atmospheric concentrations of CO2.<\/span>15<\/sup><\/a><\/span> We should continue to engage in planting trees for this reason and for the role they play in supporting biodiversity.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n However, we cannot rely on trees entirely for climate change mitigation. Humans create about 40 billion tonnes of CO2 every year.<\/span>16<\/sup><\/a><\/span> We would therefore need to plant 40 billion trees annually to offset these emissions.<\/span>17<\/sup><\/a><\/span> Not only is limited land available for this, but trees also take years to absorb serious quantities of carbon. We do not have enough time before the world’s temperature increases above 1.5\u00b0C.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n To limit global warming to well below 2\u00b0C \u2013 and preferably to 1.5\u00b0C \u2013 two principal approaches must be taken. Firstly, we must protect the forests we already have and enhance them with tree planting and other initiatives. Current nature-based solutions may provide as much as a third of the cost-effective climate mitigation needed. For this to materialise, careful management, protection and restoration<\/a> of our existing forests, wetlands, grasslands and agricultural lands will be necessary.<\/span>18<\/sup><\/a><\/span>\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Unfortunately, we are not currently approaching the natural world in a sustainable way to mitigate climate change. Deforestation, particularly in the tropics, remains rampant with an area of forest the size of the UK lost annually.<\/span>19<\/sup><\/a><\/span> This is disastrous, given how much CO2 trees absorb. Tropical forest is a vital part of climate mitigation. They hold more than 210 gigatons of carbon, equivalent to seven times our annual anthropogenic carbon emissions.<\/span>20<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Sadly, in many of the world\u2019s rainforests, deforestation is increasing. In 2020, the rate of deforestation in the Amazon rainforest reached its highest point since 2008.<\/span>21<\/sup><\/a><\/span> A similar situation persists in the second lungs of the world, the Congo Basin. Annual deforestation in the Congo has increased recently, with more than one million hectares cut down each year.<\/span>22<\/sup><\/a><\/span> Deforestation globally accounts for about eight to 10 per cent of all greenhouse gas emissions.<\/span>23<\/sup><\/a><\/span> If this imprudent practice continues, most of the world\u2019s forest will be gone, fragmented or utterly degraded by the end of the century.<\/span>24<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nWhy do we need trees to absorb carbon dioxide (CO2)?<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
How much CO2 does a tree absorb in a day?<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
How many trees would we need per year to offset climate change?<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
How can we limit global warming to well below 2\u00b0C?<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Tree planting and reducing deforestation<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n