DOES TWO-THOUSAND-BILLION TONS OF CARBON COUNT?

摘要

Two-thousand-billion tons of carbon in the form of land-based biomass should be counted when devising greenhouse gas control strategies, say researchers with the Joint Global Change Research Institute (JGCRI). According to the researchers, failing to include land use changes in carbon control policies could lead to deforestation and higher costs for limiting carbon emissions. Results also suggest improved agricultural technology will be as important as new energy technologies in a carbon-limited future. If society wants to stabilize carbon dioxide concentrations at low levels, then people can't ignore the two thousand billion tons that are out there in terrestrial systems, said Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory economist James Edmonds at the JGCRI.