Revealing soil inorganic carbon’s global impact

While carbon in Earth’s atmosphere and within living organisms is well-documented, a substantial but often overlooked reservoir exists in the planet’s soil—specifically in the form of soil inorganic carbon. A new study published in Science highlights that this type of carbon is far more prevalent than previously understood, making it a significant component of the …

Enhanced weathering carbon removal as a climate solution

The concept of Enhanced Weathering Carbon Removal is gaining momentum as a potentially significant method for removing billions of tonnes of CO₂ from the atmosphere, thus aiding global efforts to achieve net zero emissions and mitigate the most dangerous effects of climate change. This method involves spreading crushed silicate rocks, such as volcanic basalt, across …

Can we sustainably harvest trees from tropical forests?

The report, funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the US Forest Service International Program, challenges the prevailing notion that logging invariably degrades tropical forests. It proposes a shift from exploitative “timber mining” to a more sustainable “managed forestry” model, emphasizing that poor logging practices are likely to persist in a …

The importance of old growth forests

Forest conservation and restoration are critical for addressing the climate crisis, as highlighted by a comprehensive study in the journal Nature. This research, involving numerous forest ecologists, emphasizes that if greenhouse gas emissions are significantly reduced, existing forests can sequester about 226 gigatonnes of carbon, akin to nearly 50 years of U.S. emissions as of …

Bill Gates dismisses the idea of tree planting

Bill Gates recently dismissed the idea of tree planting as a comprehensive solution to addressing climate change, stating that it’s “complete nonsense” to believe that trees alone can solve the climate crisis. This perspective contrasts with the view of Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff and many others who advocate for planting and conserving a trillion trees …