⁍ Some deforested areas in the tropics may benefit more from allowing them to regrow naturally.

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⁍ The approach could absorb 8.9 billion metric tonnes of carbon each year through to 2050.

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⁍ That is on top of the carbon sponge already provided by existing forests.

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– The world’s tropical forests are disappearing at a rate of one football pitch every six seconds—and a new study suggests there’s a way to make up for that loss by letting them regrow naturally. Researchers at the World Resources Institute say allowing cleared tropical forests to regrow naturally has the potential to absorb a quarter of global carbon emissions through 2050, reports the Thomson Reuters Foundation. “Now we have a map that says ‘go to the tropics because those areas will recover carbon the quickest,'” says Nancy Harris of Global Forest Watch, which hosted the study in Nature. “Natural forest regrowth was probably previously under-appreciated as a natural climate solution,” says a researcher at Global Forest Watch. “Reducing fossil fuels is also a very important aspect to this entire problem.” The study looked at cleared tropical forests that were unused but unable to return to their former state due to activities like sporadic logging or farming. In some deforested areas, such land could be utilized with incentives for local people to help the cleared forests grow back.