The researchers estimate that some 10 million acres – roughly the size of New Hampshire and Vermont – of mainly hardwood and natural pine forests will be chopped down to make way for pine plantations by 2030 in just three Southern states. That translates into roughly 700,000 tons more carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere annually, or 21 million tons over the 30-year period.
That number may seem like a drop in the bucket compared to the 3 billion tons of carbon the United States emits annually. But Sohngen is quick to point out that the model only included Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi and that the results can apply across the southern United States, suggesting that carbon dioxide emissions could be as much as four times higher.
| technorati tags: air quality, logging, carbon dioxide, pollution |
