text on carbon, sinks, climate, etc

Forests are large reservoirs of atmospheric carbon, storing large As well, they routinely exchange carbon with the atmosphere through photosynthesis, respiration and decomposition. Our forest management practices, specifically harvesting, protection,
and silviculture influence the carbon cycle altering the uptake and storage, and the process of decomposition and
release to the atmosphere. Wood in the form of many products (paper, lumber, furniture, building materials) is another
form of carbon storage. Forests occupy over 400 million ha or roughly half of the land area of Canada and represent
roughly 10% of the global forest area. Therefore, they play an important, but not well understood, role in the global
carbon cycle. The key question in the context of current changes in atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations is
whether the forests and our use and management of them are accentuating or mitigating the problem.

Reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions is imperative to stabilizing our future climate. Our ability to reduce these emissions
combined with an understanding of how much fossil-fuel-derived CO2 the oceans and plants can absorb is central to mitigating
climate change. In The Carbon Cycle, leading scientists examine how atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations have
changed in the past and how this may affect the concentrations in the future. They look at the carbon budget and the "missing
sink" for carbon dioxide. They offer approaches to modeling the carbon cycle, providing mathematical tools for predicting
future levels of carbon dioxide. This comprehensive text incorporates findings from the recent IPCC reports. New insights, and
a convergence of ideas and views across several disciplines make this book an important contribution to the global change
literature.

Land use change through forest conversion affects the capacity of the land in fixing atmospheric
carbon and accumulating it in the biomass. Increasing sequestration of greenhouse gases is one
of the strategies concerning control of climate change. The amount of CO2 uptake by forests is
the main CO2 uptake sink in Indonesia. In Indonesia, forest activities during
1988/1989-1990/1991 indicate an annual carbon uptake of 293.53 MTC/y2 and carbon
emissions of 21.30 MTC/year, this gives a negative net carbon balance of 272.23 MTC/y2 .
Indonesian Selective Cutting and Planting systems (TPTI systems) when implemented
correctly, provides a useful system for rejuvenation of forest and maintaining adequate carbon
sinks. Forest conversion to other perennial crop (i.e. oil palm, rubber, cocoa) also contributes
to carbon sink capacity.

Forests contribute to climate change through the sequestration of carbon or the release of
greenhouse gases stored in the trees and in forest soil, either through afforestation and other
management interventions to promote tree growth, or through deforestation and harmful
management practices. Forest ecosystems and planted trees may in turn be affected by
changes in climate, in terms of distribution, growth rate, diversity of species, etc.

It is currently believed that forests do not contribute to net atmospheric CO2 and are thus not
making a contribution to global climate change. However, this situation could change as forests
in temperate and boreal regions reach maturity, and thus become a smaller carbon sink, and if
rates of deforestation and degradation in the tropics continue. The emission of greenhouse
gases from forests in mid- and high- latitudes could be further increased if climatic changes lead
to greater mortality and thus wildfires.

The meeting noted that forest management options compatible with the sequestration of carbon
already exist, although they may in certain (but not all) cases be costly, thus reducing the purely
economic returns from forestry investment. Short-term benefits may be obtained from storage
management options such as, for example, the protection of secondary or degraded forest, the
establishment of plantations on degraded or other land that is not carrying forest, increased
rotations, reduced impact logging or the introduction or expansion of agroforestry systems.
Longer term benefits may be obtained through substitution management options which increase
the transfer of carbon in forest biomass into products such as construction materials or forms
of renewable energy, rather than relying on energy derived from fossil fuels or cement-based
products. The meeting warned that it was necessary to avoid implementing policies designed to
reduce the emission of greenhouse gases that may bring their own hazards; an example is the
use of fuelwood, which can have a negative impact on health if it is not burned in properly
designed stoves.

The meeting noted the important contributions that had been made to carbon sequestration
through afforestation (e.g., Korea), the protection of forests (e.g., Turkey, Bulgaria) and
improved management practices (such as selective cutting in Indonesia) in many countries that
made contributions and interventions to the session. The meeting recommended the Joint
Implementation approach recently proposed under the UN Framework Convention on
Climate change as a promising instrument for funding and promoting international cooperation
for the protection of tropical rainforests, with benefits for the provision of other services from
these forests such as the generation of biologicaldiversity.

The meeting agreed on the need for new methods to estimate atmospheric and forest-stored
carbon, and for the harmonization of such methods. Much further research is needed into the
role of forests as sources and sinks of greenhouse gases, and the meeting recommended a
higher priority and a coordinated approach from international, regional and national institutions
for such studies.

The meeting recommended the active involvement of all concerned in reducing deforestation
and activities that degrade forest ecosystems, in the afforestation of suitable sites, and in the
introduction of suitable short- and long-term policy and management options that will not only
contribute to sustainable development but also to enhancing the positive role forests can play in
preventing climate change.

Climate change is linked to changes in atmospheric green house gas concentrations, particularly carbon dioxide.
Forests are large reservoirs of atmospheric carbon, storing large amounts of carbon in standing biomass (trunks,
branches, leaves, roots), soils and peatlands. As well, they routinely exchange carbon with the atmosphere through
photosynthesis, respiration and decomposition. Our forest management practices, specifically harvesting, protection,
and silviculture influence the carbon cycle altering the uptake and storage, and the process of decomposition and
release to the atmosphere. Wood in the form of many products (paper, lumber, furniture, building materials) is another
form of carbon storage. Forests occupy over 400 million ha or roughly half of the land area of Canada and represent
roughly 10% of the global forest area. Therefore, they play an important, but not well understood, role in the global
carbon cycle. The key question in the context of current changes in atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations is
whether the forests and our use and management of them are accentuating or mitigating the problem.

Forests cover 4.1 billion hectares of the Earth's land surface and contain up to 80% of all above-ground carbon (C) and 40% of all below-ground C ( in soil, litter, roots). This article analyzes recent studies to produce a new global estimate of C pools and emissions from changes in forest land use, determine if there is evidence for C sinks in forests, examine the potential to expand and manage forests to conserve and sequester C, and consider future forest C pools and flux in changing climate and land-use scenarios. The authors estimate that soils and peat contain 69% and vegetation 31% of the total forest C pool. The allocation of C between vegetation and soils differs by latitude. The authors conclude that the net flux to the atmosphere from the world's forests caused by changes in land use, forest status, and forest C cycling process was approximately -1.3 to -1.5 Petagrams per year-1 with a midpoint of -0.4 Pg year -1. This is about 15% of global fossil fuel-based C emissions. The authors' conclusion that mid- and high-latitude forests are a sink differs from the results of other studies which have estimated that these forests were approximately in balance in 1980. The article also discusses forest management practices to conserve and sequester C, as well as other related topics.