Hurricanes Impact Carbon Sequestration By Forests

Posted by Dale on Mar 25, 2002 at 17:16
(204.212.222.16)

Global warming has been tied to increasing amounts of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere from human activities ranging from clearing land to burning fossil fuels. Attention has been focused on US forests as possible sinks for carbon dioxide from various emissions. Estimates of the amount of carbon dioxide taken up by forests vary; predictions based on these estimates are an important factor in policy debates about global warming control.

“A single hurricane can convert ten percent of the total annual carbon storage for the United States into dead and downed forest biomass,” said McNulty. “Hurricanes leave behind a lot of dead trees that decompose and return carbon to the atmosphere before it can be harvested.”

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2002/03/020325080253.htm



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