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Published online 16 April 2009 | Nature | doi:10.1038/news.2009.369
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Dying trees may exacerbate climate change
Forests could emit more carbon than they store if temperatures rise.
Forestry experts have again warned that climate change could transform forests from sinks to sources of carbon. The carbon storing capacity of global forests could be lost entirely if the earth heats up 2.
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Forests are only carbon traps if they are growing in size... if they shrink, they emit carbon. This isn't rocket science, it's simple chemistry: trees and forests are carbonaceous; they absorb carbon as they grow and expand, and they release carbon as the forest biomass dies off and decomposes. Trees don't permanently "lock" carbon as if they were sending limestone down a mineshaft and burying it 1000 meters underground.
Yes, nice to see the truth come out about poor forest management policies that foster the spread of insect infestation and disease. Fire suppression in Western America has been the single biggest factor in leaving our forest resource vulnerable. Short sighted economic factors trumped the need for more frequent fires that adjust the soil PH, reduce the overgrowth of brush, and scour out the disease. Before the Eurpoean came to North America, lightning strikes burned until they could burn no more. The fires were quick moving, cooler, and doing the job of germinating seeds. The forests discovered by the Europeans were vast, lush, green, and healthy. We need to wise up! Soarhead