Replanting Forests Alone Is Not Enough to Stop Climate Change: Here’s Why
By Eric Tran, WellKind Forestry Intern
Eric Tran was an intern for WellKind Forestry during our fall 2022 session, exploring the power of ancient trees and other environmental topics.
As climate change continues to intensify and we approach the point of no return, it’s imperative to face the problem head-on, to truly look at it for what it is. Despite all the efforts made by activists, many countries show no signs of showing meaningful progress to alleviate the problem that is climate change as more and more forests are being cut down to be transformed into land for human development. It has gotten to the point where every second, a soccer field’s worth of forest—1.76 acres—is cut down (Carrington, et al., 2018). Many of these trees can’t simply be replaced by planting new ones.
How Older Trees Support Biodiversity
While newly planted trees do grow to eventually provide the same basic effects of more ancient trees, they can’t provide the same level of support that more ancient trees do. Ancient trees, having existed across millenia, establish themselves as fundamental pillars to the forests they reside in.
For one, ancient trees are more likely to house a wider range of biodiversity that dwarfs that which is held by your average tree. Being the habitat for some of the most diverse life in a forest, they are a major contributor to the balance of life in forest ecosystems. For example, compared to normal trees, ancient trees are normally home to a range of more diverse and rarer insects who help decompose nutrients into the soil (Gough, et al., 2015).
As the decline of ancient trees continues, species like red-listed lichen are threatened as they can’t sustain themselves without the unique environment ancient trees provide. (Paltto, et al., 2011). Lichen give back to the ecosystem by providing animals a source of food and habitat which in turn provides possible fertilizer for the trees. The loss of vital species that the cut-down ancient trees once supported will no doubt strain the symbiotic relationship between the animals and plants (Paquette, et al., 2010). If we tried to replant trees to make up for ancient trees that were cut down, irreparable damage would already have been done to the ecosystem.
How Ancient Trees Protect Us
As climate change causes weather patterns to become more unpredictable, the importance of trees continues to grow. Trees form natural barriers against natural phenomena like storms and unforeseen dangers from the ocean like flooding (Satyanarayana, et al., 2017). It’s important to keep in mind that while still young, trees can’t provide the same protection they do while mature.
Older Trees and Carbon Sequestration
Providing a home to a broader spectrum of life isn’t the only thing that ancient trees do better than the average tree. During the later stages of their lives, trees tend to sequester carbon at a faster rate (Moomaw, et al., 2019).
As we approach the point of no return for climate change, it’s crucial that we do everything in our power to prevent it from worsening. By cutting down ancient forests as an easy means to gain resources and acquire land for development, we’re shooting ourselves in the foot. Even if trees are replanted, it will take a while until they mature into a viable means to sequester carbon. This will jeopardize our power to prevent climate change from worsening, especially since we currently only have so much time before we reach the point of no return.
However, that’s not to say that planting trees is futile. It merely is not a suitable replacement for the ancient trees that have been cut down. It’s narrow-minded to forsake the longevity of our planet for the sake of a few easy gains. Since ancient trees are some of the greatest carbon sinks in the world, it seems counterproductive to continuously cripple the world, as well as ourselves, by cutting down countless ancient trees.
References
Carrington, D., Kommenda, N., Gutierrez, P., and Levett, C. (2018, June 27). One football pitch of forest lost every second in 2017, data reveals. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/ng-interactive/2018/jun/27/one-football-pitch-of-forest-lost-every-second-in-2017-data-reveals
Gough, L. A., Sverdrup‐Thygeson, A., Milberg, P., Pilskog, H. E., Jansson, N., Jonsell, M., & Birkemoe, T. (2015). Specialists in ancient trees are more affected by climate than generalists. Ecology and Evolution, 5(23), 5632–5641. https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.1799
Moomaw, W., Masino, S., & Faison, E. (2019, June 11). Intact Forests in the United States: Proforestation Mitigates Climate Change and Serves the Greatest Good. Frontiers. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/ffgc.2019.00027/full
Paltto, H., Nordberg, A., Nordén, B., & Snäll, T. (2011). Development of Secondary Woodland in Oak Wood Pastures Reduces the Richness of Rare Epiphytic Lichens. PLoS ONE, 6(9), e24675. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0024675
Paquette, A., & Messier, C. (2010). The effect of biodiversity on tree productivity: from temperate to boreal forests. Global Ecology and Biogeography, 20(1), 170–180. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1466-8238.2010.00592.x
Satyanarayana, B., Van der Stocken, T., Rans, G., Kodikara, K. A. S., Ronsmans, G., Jayatissa, L. P., Husain, M.-L., Koedam, N., & Dahdouh-Guebas, F. (2017). Island-wide coastal vulnerability assessment of Sri Lanka reveals that sand dunes, planted trees and natural vegetation may play a role as potential barriers against ocean surges. Global Ecology and Conservation, 12, 144–157. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2017.10.001