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Science, Spoken

From What's New: Stop Planting Trees, Says Guy Who Inspired World to Plant a Trillion Trees

May 29, 2024
Ecologist Thomas Crowther challenges mass tree plantations as a solution and discusses the downsides of tree planting. He explores the complexities of tree restoration, greenwashing, COP 28, UAE's state oil firm's ambitious expansion, carbon storage, fossil fuel emissions, and the shift towards woodland preservation in climate solutions.
08:50

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Quick takeaways

  • Mass tree planting may harm biodiversity and offer limited carbon drawdown capabilities.
  • Restoring intact woodlands is prioritized over planting new trees for more impactful climate change mitigation.

Deep dives

Skepticism on Mass Tree Planting as Climate Solution

Thomas Crowther, former UN chief scientific advisor, advocated for caution in mass tree plantations as a climate solution at COP 28. He highlighted that newly created forests have limited carbon drawdown capabilities and can harm biodiversity. Crowther's previous study on 1.2 trillion additional trees led to a tree planting frenzy, later corrected to acknowledge preserving existing forests as more impactful.

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