Carbon dioxide is a killer. It traps heat and is the biggest contributor to climate change. But not all CO2 stays in the air. Plants suck it out of the atmosphere when they photosynthesize. Today, vegetation stores about 25% of our carbon emissions.
A new study published in Science estimates that forests in the midwest doubled their carbon storage capacity in the 8,000 years preceding the industrial age. The researchers hope that reconstructing historical vegetation can help to model future climate change and inform mitigation measures.
The researchers modeled forest composition for the last 10,000 years — a period known as the Holocene. This period began after the last major ice age and continues to this day. It is painstakingly difficult for researchers to characterize ancient forests, but these estimates are vital for understanding how nature pulls carbon out of the atmosphere.
The team reconstructed Holocene forests with a custom-built ...
