Fears over accelerating carbon dioxide (CO2)
levels have led to speculation about runaway climate change. Predictions based
on Met Office models and research on polar ice caps indicate possible
temperature increases as high as 10 deg C over a 50 year period. Within a few
years we will know if catastrophic climate change is occurring much sooner than
scientists feared.
While scientists hold their breath in the light of recent discoveries from
Hawaii, a few organizations such as the World Land Trust are actively working to
preserve standing forests and avoid CO2 emissions. Reforestation will become
profitable under the Kyoto protocol with revenue generated from "Carbon
Exchanges". However a criticism of the Kyoto mechanism is that it has no
provision for securing existing forests, despite deforestation accounting for
nearly 30% of global CO2 emissions.
The World Land Trust is addressing these problems by targeting areas that
include mature forest and areas of deforestation. This channels reforestation
funds, generated from carbon trading, into preserving existing forest. Projects
in Belize and Ecuador are already underway.
Reducing carbon emissions and sequestering carbon from the atmosphere is a vital
step in preventing climate change. Recent findings indicate a rapid increase of
CO2 into the atmosphere and projects such as those of the World Land Trust,
which maximize the reduction in atmospheric CO2, are increasingly important.
For more information, visit our website http://www.carbonbalanced.org
Notes to editors:
Deforestation is largely occurring in tropical regions such as South America.
Standing forest has been shown to sequester an average of 1 ton of carbon per
hectare per year.
World Land Trust is a Registered Charity - No. 1001291
David Gower OBE and Sir David Attenborough are patrons of the World Land Trust.
For further information:
John A. Burton, Chief Executive, WLT, + 44 (0) 1986 874422
jab@worldlandtrust.org or
Oliver Blakeman, Carbon Intern, WLT, + 44 (0) 1986 874422
info@worldlandtrust.org