Offsetting global fossil fuel stores by planting trees is impossible

It would be almost impossible to plant enough trees to compensate for the climatic impact of the combustion of fossil fuel reserves in the world. The compensation for the 182 billion tonnes estimated of carbon held in the reserves of the largest fossil fuels in the world would need to cover more land with trees than all of North America and Central America.

The analysis, by Alain Naef to Essec Business School in France and its colleagues, evaluated the cost and viability of the compensation for carbon emissions from the combustion of oil, gas and coal reserves held by the 200 largest fossil fuel companies around the world.

The researchers found that an area greater than 24.75 million square kilometers should be planted with new trees to compensate for the impact of the combustion of these reserves, swallowing the equivalent of the whole land mass in North America, Central America and combined South America parts.

It would not be practical to realize in reality, requiring the displacement of colonies, agricultural land and other existing natural habitats.

“There is simply not enough land for the level of afforestation which would be necessary to compensate for emissions linked to fossil fuels,” explains Rich Collett-White at UK Energy Analysts Carbon Tracker. “Pursuit of this level of afforestation may increase the prices of foodstuffs – if agricultural land is diverted to afforestation – or indirectly causing deforestation elsewhere to meet global food demand.”

Meanwhile, the financial cost of such a mass -scale afforestation system would be ruinous. The cost of planting trees is around $ 16 per tonne of CO₂ equivalent which is offset. At this price, the use of trees to compensate for emissions from fossil fuels reserves would eliminate all the market value of 64% of the largest fossil fuel companies, the team revealed. This does not include the cost of acquiring the land.

If a higher price of carbon is used, in order to take into account the negative social and economic consequences of the combustion of fossil fuels, the results suggest that all companies would essentially become bankrupt.

Naef and his colleagues recognize that there is little chance that the fossil fuel companies will voluntarily compensate for the emissions of their reserves. Instead, they say that work is an experience of thought to emphasize that compensation cannot be used to allow polluting industries to continue commercial operations as usual. “Our key message of this document is that this oil and this gas should stay in the ground,” Naef told a press briefing on June 18.

Tim Rayden in Trillion Trees, a British trees planting campaign group, agrees. “The planting of trees does not replace the rapid suppression of fossil fuels and should not replace the action to decarbonize our savings,” he said.