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Updated: 20 Mar 2022 11:46 IST
new York [US]March 20 (ANI): A new study conducted by Columbia University has revealed that restored forests have a high probability of being cleared within a few years.
The study was published in the journal ‘Environmental Research Letters’.
The study also found that one-third of the regenerating areas in the Brazilian Atlantic forest were reclaimed, usually after only 4 to 8 years of regeneration.
It also quantified forest regeneration in the Brazilian Atlantic forest and identified factors that influence how long the regenerated forest survives.
Natural forest regeneration is considered as a cost-effective strategy for countries to achieve their ecological restoration and carbon sequestration goals.
The authors used detailed land use coverage data from 1985 to 2019 to map and track the fate of over 4.5 million hectares of regenerated forests in the Brazilian Atlantic forest. They found that only 3.1 million hectares would remain in existence by 2019.
“While the persistence of two thirds of the regenerated forests in the region offers a positive outlook on biome conservation, the short lifespan of regenerated forests is emerging as a new challenge for the restoration efforts in the region,” said Pedro Ribeiro Piffer , and Ph.D. .D. Candidate in Columbia and lead author of the study.
The ephemeral nature of these regrown forests limits the biodiversity and carbon storage benefits of regeneration, he said.
“Carbon sequestration through tropical reforestation and natural recovery can make a significant contribution to reducing climate change, as forest cover in many tropical regions in the early 21st century studies the dynamics of tropical forests.
“The size of this carbon sink, however, depends on the degree to which these forests are permanent and protected from re-clearing,” she added.
In an earlier paper, Piffer and Uriarte found that without this reversal in reforestation, forests in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest region could sequester 1.75 billion tons of carbon – more than three times the estimated actual sequestration of 0.52 billion tons.
“Our results highlight a double challenge for forest conservation in tropical regions, where we must not only restore degraded areas, but we must also ensure the persistence of these young regenerating forests,” said Jean Paul Metzger, an ecology professor at the University of Sao. Paulo and a co-author on the new study.
Researchers note that the persistence of tropical forest regeneration is crucial for nations to achieve their restoration and carbon sequestration commitments under the Paris Agreement.
They also identified factors that could help protect regrown forests. They found that regenerated forests had greater chances of surviving on steeper slopes, close to rivers and existing forests, and almost permanent agriculture. Forests were less likely to exist in more rural areas. Also, while recovery occurred mainly in pastures and areas of insane agriculture, it was also less likely to persist in these dynamic landscapes.
Regenerated forests can take decades to recover from riches and biomass levels before disturbances, so identifying conditions that will allow more persistence of these young forests is vital for developing effective public policy, aimed at bishop coverage in the Brazilian Atlantic. To raise forests. ” sot Piffer. (ANI)
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