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Climate science

Afforestation cools more or less

Forests affect climate not only by taking up carbon, but also by absorbing solar radiation and enhancing evaporation. In the tropics, the climate benefit of afforestation may be nearly double that expected from carbon budgets alone.

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Figure 1: Afforestation effects on global mean temperature.

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Correspondence to Richard A. Betts.

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Betts, R. Afforestation cools more or less. Nature Geosci 4, 504–505 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo1223

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