Write of reply : Forest cover

Pictures of spreads from New Scientist magazine


When discussing a report on the link between transport and the greenhouse effect, Ian Lowe (Antipodes, 4 January) says that "in the short-term, planting trees is the most effective (way to reduce net carbon dioxide emissions), but this only stores carbon for a limited period, because trees are cut down and return their carbon to the atmosphere". This is like saying that a lake or a river is a short-term water store, because the individual molecules of water pass through the system rapidly. The reality is that rivers and lakes are a permanent water store, and a forest is a permanent carbon store. Normal harvesting, or the removal of a small component of a forest amounting to the annual increment, should not be confused with deforestation, which is a permanent change in vegetation cover.

The benefit of trees lies in the fact that a tree-covered landscape has a higher ...



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