Deforestation & Climate Change

Efforts to mitigate climate change have focused on reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions into the atmosphere. Some of these efforts centre on reducing CO2 emissions from deforestation, since deforestation releases about 17% of all annual anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and is seen as a relatively low-cost target for emissions reduction. Policies aimed at reducing deforestation are central points of a strategy to decrease carbon emissions, reflected in pending legislation in Congress as well as in international discussions, such as the December 2009 negotiations in Copenhagen. This book discusses the linkages between forests and climate, describing the characteristics of the major forest biomes, with an overview of deforestation causes and impacts and approaches to reducing deforestation.