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forestation

Forestation

A much-used method in carbon offset world is forestation or forest carbon offset. This method includes planting new trees or protection of existing forests that should result in the creation of so-called carbon sinks that (over time) capture carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and retain it. It is undoubtedly the case that trees capture carbon dioxide but there are many questions around the sustainability and additionality of these methods.  If, for example, forests are cut down for fuel, carbon is released into the air, similarly is the case with forest fires.

The additionality of these projects can also be doubtful since many of these forests would have been planted anyhow for economic reasons (e.g., wood production) or nature conservation purposes. In these cases, they would not pass the additionality criteria and as such do not live up to the key quality criteria, we use for high quality offset programs. Another drawback of forest carbon offset is the time it takes to realize the actual reduction, especially when planting new trees. It will usually take decades before the actual reduction is achieved. 

 

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