The Natural Fix?

CURRENT CARBON STOCKS IN BIOMASS AND SOIL

Terrestrial ecosystems store almost three times as much carbon as is in the atmo- sphere. Tropical and boreal forests repre- sent the largest stores. The maintenance of existing carbon reservoirs is among the highest priorities in striving for cli- mate change mitigation.

Terrestrial ecosystems store about 2100 Gt C in living or- ganisms, litter and soil organic matter, which is almost three times that currently present in the atmosphere. Dif- ferent ecosystem types store different amounts of carbon depending on their species compositions, soil types, climate

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