2 years, 5 months ago
How much can a single tree in a rainforest make in the current carbon trading negotiation?
The carbon trading is seen the next biggest ever money making machine for countries that have rainforest. Out of curosity I would like to know the claculation used to work out how much tree to make in such deal so if i have 1 hectare of forest I like to know the potential income of my forest on my land.
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M$1 Answer
I am not sure what the argument is (if there is indeed an argument) for including rainforests in carbon trading and whether or not there is a formula that is used to calculate the about of carbon offset "credits" a rainforest tree can make.
However, it is important to realize that just having a living tree does not mean you are taking CO2 out of the atmosphere. A mature tree is in a state of equilibrium with respect to CO2 - all of the CO2 that it absorbs through photosynthesis, it re-emits through respiration or indirectly when microorganisms eat its fruit and dead leaves and branches. The total carbon contained in the forest needs to be increasing for it to be considered a "sink" for CO2. Reforesting deforested land is one way to do this (plant a tree for the world!!). One estimate, by "Carbon Footprint", is that a newly planted tree will absorb about 1 tonne of CO2 over a lifetime of 100 years.
http://www.carbonfootprint.com/plantingtrees.html
There might be a "minus" argument for making rainforests "carbon offsets", in that you are paid to keep the carbon in your forest. In which case, the calculation could be based on the amount of carbon in a mature tree, which is about 50% of the dry weight of the tree.
However, it is important to realize that just having a living tree does not mean you are taking CO2 out of the atmosphere. A mature tree is in a state of equilibrium with respect to CO2 - all of the CO2 that it absorbs through photosynthesis, it re-emits through respiration or indirectly when microorganisms eat its fruit and dead leaves and branches. The total carbon contained in the forest needs to be increasing for it to be considered a "sink" for CO2. Reforesting deforested land is one way to do this (plant a tree for the world!!). One estimate, by "Carbon Footprint", is that a newly planted tree will absorb about 1 tonne of CO2 over a lifetime of 100 years.
http://www.carbonfootprint.com/plantingtrees.html
There might be a "minus" argument for making rainforests "carbon offsets", in that you are paid to keep the carbon in your forest. In which case, the calculation could be based on the amount of carbon in a mature tree, which is about 50% of the dry weight of the tree.
You can leave an optional "tip" with Mahalo's virtual currency, Mahalo Dollars. If you are asking a difficult question that might require some research, or if you'd like a wide variety of feedback, a higher tip often leads to more answers to your question.
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