Planet Earth is suffering from a Climate disaster. The impacts of climate change are dreadful and are causing damage to both the well-being of human beings and the overall ecosystem. Mankind needs to accept climate change as a real issue that needs urgent action. In this regard, many climate change mitigation strategies have been proposed. One of the most effective strategies is preserving the forest cover. Forests are complicatedly linked to climate change, both as a cause and a solution. If you want to save the planet, plant a tree. That’s right, planting trees has a profound impact on the environment. In this blog post, I will tell you why forests are important for mitigating climate change. Let’s find out.  

World forest cover

Around 31% of the Earth’s land surface is covered by forests. More than half of the total world forest cover is in only 5 countries i.e., China, Russia, Brazil, Canada, and the United States. FAO stats indicate that the total forest area is 4.06 billion hectares.

However, over the last couple of centuries, the forest area has been declining at an alarming rate Each year millions of hectares of forest cover are lost. Since, 1990, more than 420 million hectares of natural forests have been lost. According to an estimate, over the past 8000 years, the world’s forest cover has been reduced to half by humans.

What are the drivers of deforestation?

Did you know that only four commodities drive the majority of tropical deforestation? Can you name those commodities? If you can’t name them, here are those; beef, soy, wood products, and palm oil.

Other drivers of deforestation include Mining, climate change, fires, charcoal production, paper production, agriculture, livestock ranching, construction, timber logging, and many more.

The benefits we get from trees

Trees offer a wide range of advantages. They play a life-sustaining role in many ways.

• They help in stabilizing the climate.
• Trees protect the soil by preventing soil erosion and providing water regulation
• Trees protect coastal people from extreme weather events
• Crops grown in agroforest systems are more resilient to extreme weather conditions
• Trees provide habitat for around 90% of land-based living creatures and plants
• Trees provide medicines
• Trees absorb carbon dioxide and act as carbon sinks
• They provide stable food and wood supplies
• The forest supports the livelihoods of millions of people all around the world
• They provide nuts, fruits, rubber, etc.
• Trees keep the air moist and reduce wind speed

How much deforestation is responsible for climate change?

Forest are linked with climate change in multifaceted ways. Trees absorb carbon dioxide during photosynthesis and store it in wood and vegetation through the process of carbon sequestration, thus regulating the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere. Trees are about 20% carbon by weight.

As per the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), forests hold more than 1 trillion tons of carbon, which is twice the carbon dioxide free-floating in the atmosphere.

When the trees are cut or burnt, they release the carbon stored, which contributes to global climate change. Annually billions of tons of carbon dioxide are released into the atmosphere due to deforestation.

According to an estimate, deforestation accounts for around 30% of total carbon dioxide emissions. In addition to having an impact on climate change, the forest also regulates the local weather patterns. Deforestation has both long-term and short-term implications

Why are forests important for mitigating climate change?

Let’s find out why are forests important for mitigating climate change. Forests are a cornerstone of climate change. Deforestation is one of the main drivers of climate change.

The role of trees in mitigating climate change has been highlighted in a variety of policy arenas. Climate scientists and climate change experts strongly believe that halting deforestation and efficient forest management strategies can play a crucial role in mitigating climate change.

In the latest States of the World’s Forests Report, 2022 FAO defines three pathways for halting deforestation namely restoring degraded land, building green value chains, and expanding agroforestry and sustainable use forests. Key takeaways from the report are as follows:

• The report further identified that halting deforestation and maintaining forests can yield in avoid emissions of 3.6 Giga tons of CO2 equivalent (GtCO2e) per year between 2020 and 2050.
• Restoration of degraded land and expansion of agroforestry can take up to 1.5 GtCO2e per year out of the atmosphere between 2020 and 2050
• Building green value chains will ensure higher employability and better livelihood in the future

Hence forests are very important for mitigating climate change. The current investment in forests falls short of what is required. More financial resources should be diverted to rally the action.   

Who can play a role in the restoration of forests?

Restoration of the forest is a significant climate change mitigation strategy. But the question is whose involvement is more important?

The answer is everyone; including the world organizations such as United Nations, World Bank, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF), private organizations, the scientific community, local community groups, and other stakeholders.

Not only governments and organizations are responsible for the mitigation; You and I have a moral obligation of protecting the ecosystem. So, we should play our roles irrespective of the scale. Every tiny action matters including planting a plant or watering a tree.   

Conclusion

Now that you know why forests are important for mitigating climate change. The well-being of future generations is in our hands. Hence, we need to work together and save our planet. Planting a tree only takes a couple of minutes but the impact lasts for generations to come.

The whole international community needs to pool information and financial resources to accelerate the action. Moreover, global organizations should join hands and work collaboratively for the restoration of forest cover, so that the global climate change goals are achieved on time.

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