US Forest Carbon Capture and Storage Studied

The initial portion of a pioneering US carbon capture study has highlighted the degree to which forest areas could strip the atmosphere of CO2. The bottom 48 US states could, on paper, store up to an extra 7 billion tons of CO2, if new forests were grown to complement existing ones, it stated. To put this in perspective, the amount described is equivalent to the amount of CO2 that would be released as a result of industrial fossil fuel incineration in the US over a four-year period.

CO2 Capture and Storage

The CO2 capture study is being carried out by scientists at the US Geological Survey, and details of it were presented at the December 7th-18th Copenhagen Climate Change Conference in Denmark. In comments made at this event, Ken Salazar - US Secretary of the Interior – described how CO2 emissions were “putting our world—and our way of life—in peril.”

“By restoring ecosystems and protecting certain areas from development, the US can store more carbon in ways that enhance our stewardship of land and natural resources while reducing our contribution to global warming”, he added.

Forest Carbon Capture

The US’ present extent of forests holds 17 billion metric tons of CO2, while 73 billion more are held in the soil. This combined 90bn tons worth is as much as would be released from burning fossil fuels for half a century in the US. The problem, though, is that the rate of carbon intake falls below the rate of emissions being created by approximately 70 per cent. Therefore, boosting the nation’s ability to sequester CO2 through forest carbon capture is vital in terms of climate change adaption strategies. And this isn’t just exclusive to the US, either.

“The tools the USGS is developing—and the technologies behind those tools—will be of great use to communities around the world that are making management decisions on carbon storage”, survey director Marcia McNutt explained. “The USGS is conducting a national assessment of biologic carbon sequestration, as well as an assessment of ecosystem carbon and greenhouse gas fluxes, which will help determine how we can reduce atmospheric CO2 levels while preserving other ecological functions.”