Brian Murray

Concern over potentially catastrophic climate change has catalyzed efforts to reverse the trend of rising concentrations of greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the atmosphere. The primary cause of these rising concentrations is the combustion and release of carbon dioxide (CO2) stored in fossil fuels, but nearly 20% of global GHG emissions is attributed to deforestation, primarily in the tropics. Growing forests also have a substantial impact on the global carbon cycle by removing atmospheric CO2 via photosynthesis and sequestering it in forest biomass and soils. The Kyoto Protocol, the prevailing international treaty on climate, creates an international market for GHG reductions and the economic incentives that go with it. The Protocol has a role for land use change and forestry activities in this market, but it is very limited. Negotiations for a revised Protocol, now underway, hold some promise that forestry's role could be expanded, particularly in the area of emissions from deforestation. Domestic legislation now being considered by the US Congress has provisions both for domestic forest carbon sequestration and emission reductions from tropical deforestation that could substantially expand the role of forests in global climate change efforts.