Nature’s Carbon Solution
The Easter weekend is just ahead.
Wherever you’ll be, keep an eye out for green spaces.
On this good Friday I will leave you to think about the magic of nature.
Nature’s carbon solution is leading the fight against climate change.
How?
👉Oceans and seas, trees and mangroves, plants and certain land (e.g. peatlands) absorb carbon dioxide (CO2). The green organisms use CO2 to grow and release oxygen in the process (lucky us!)
👉It’s the most natural, efficient & cost-effective way to capture, remove and store/use up carbon. This is often referred to as ‘carbon sequestering’ and is the heart of nature’s carbon solution.
Pure magic
👉A tree absorbs between tens to over a hundred kilograms of CO2 per year (depending on the species, age, size, soil)
💡A tree also provides shade, shelter, food, and allows ecosystems to thrive
👉Mangroves lock-in even more carbon than forests (up to 4x as much!)
👉Seas & oceans:
-cold waters at high latitudes are able to just dissolve CO2
-biological elements (e.g. phytoplankton, algae) sequester CO2, and are a meal for marine animals
👉 Permafrost (frozen soil with chunks of snowy ice) – the Arctic permafrost holds around 1,700 billion metric tons of carbon!
But
👉Deforestation is still happening. Biodiversity is still destroyed. Permafrost is thawing (disappearing). Oceans are absorbing more carbon than their natural cycle can handle – threatening the effectiveness of nature’s carbon solution.
Solutions are key🗝️⋆｡𖦹°‧★ restoration & conservation
👏Conservationists are working on the natural balance of biodiversity and native species for any landscape. You can’t just plant trees – look at the whole ecosystem
-Diversity needs to go into single-species landscapes, including farmland and urban green spaces
👏Forests – restoration projects are happening globally, including the Restoring Mediterranean Forests initiative
👏Mangroves – mangrove restoration, notably in Sri Lanka and Indonesia
👏Corals-reef conservation – initiatives are in place to create more marine protected areas. These initiatives use technology to map surroundings, and restore reefs with natural fragments
💡Coral reefs underpin ocean biodiversity. 25% of marine species call it home
👏Wetlands conservation – to promote their huge biodiversity and avoid burning/water draining of peatlands
👏Reverse desertification – Regreening Africa aims to restore 5 million hectares of land
👉Transition to eco-farming
Needs major technique overhaul = education & investment.
Some interesting techniques:
👏Full soil analysis to optimise planting (remember my space post?)
👏Crop-management e.g. plant crops that do not perish yearly, that grow deep roots to absorb more carbon, and plant new crops after harvest to continue carbon stocking
👏Agroforestry – combines tree-and-shrub planting with farming (crop and livestock) to create wind shelter, better soil quality, resilience to floods & droughts, and a more diverse income
👏Spread rock dust over fields to capture carbon
While you are here, have a look at my services to see how I can help you on your eco journey!
sources: EcoTree, Selectra, Nausicaa, Nature Scot, JPL, UN, FAO, LSE, MIT
Happy good Friday!