Study Reveals Africa's Forests Shifted to Net Carbon Emitters

(MENAFN) Africa's forests and woodlands have shifted from crucial carbon absorbers to net carbon emitters due to widespread deforestation and degradation, according to groundbreaking research published Friday in Scientific Reports.

Scientists analyzed high-resolution satellite imagery, cross-referenced with ground-level measurements, to track aboveground woody biomass transformations across the continent between 2007 and 2017.

The data revealed Africa accumulated 439 million tons of biomass annually from 2007 to 2010, but hemorrhaged 132 million tons yearly between 2010 and 2015, followed by 41 million tons per year from 2015 to 2017.

Tropical moist broadleaf forests bore the brunt of destruction, with the Democratic Republic of Congo, Madagascar, and West African regions suffering the most severe damage.

The research underscores that this dramatic reversal from carbon sink to carbon source demands immediate implementation of robust conservation measures and large-scale forest restoration programs, the study states.

Savanna ecosystems showed biomass increases, likely fueled by shrub encroachment, which partially counterbalanced forest devastation—but fell far short of reversing the continental decline.

Historically, African forests absorbed approximately 20% of worldwide carbon emissions through photosynthesis.

These latest findings indicate that ongoing forest destruction could sabotage international climate objectives, including targets established under the Paris Agreement.

Study authors urged more aggressive commitments during current revisions to Nationally Determined Contributions and intensified worldwide action to eliminate deforestation, as committed in the Glasgow Leaders Declaration.

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