Old forests are 'carbon sinks'

News Article - 16 September 2008
Category: Environment

Old growth forests act as "carbon sinks" by absorbing carbon dioxide for centuries, meaning they should be factored in when accounting for carbon emissions, according to a report.

Analysis published in the journal Nature found that 15 per cent of forest land in the northern hemisphere is unmanaged primary forest with significant amounts of old growth, which could provide as much as ten per cent of the global net uptake of carbon dioxide.

However, these old growth areas are not protected by international treaties and were not included in the carbon emissions measurement used to create national "carbon budgets" under the Kyoto Protocol.

Accounting for carbon with forests "should give credit for leaving old growth forest intact" the researchers said in their report.

"Much of this carbon, even soil carbon, will move back to the atmosphere if these forests are disturbed."

The findings challenge conventional wisdom based on a 1960s study which found that forests aged 150 years or older give off as much carbon as they take up, making them "carbon neutral."

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