Protect and enhance our “green lungs” to control CO2

Protect and enhance our “green lungs” to control CO2

January 29, 2019

Met Office researchers expect to record one of the biggest rises in atmospheric concentrations of CO2 in 2019.

Nick Heasman, Countryside and Policy Manager at the South Downs National Park Authority and an expert in woodland management to control carbon dioxide levels, says “green lungs” likes the National Park are vital to help control excessive amounts of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

He said: “It’s concerning that 2019 is expected to record one of the biggest rises in CO2 and this is certainly a warning siren about the vital importance of protecting and enhancing Britain’s forests.

“The South Downs is the most forested National Park in England and Wales and, while only one woodland region of many, it’s crucial that our green lungs are conserved to soak up the large amounts of CO2 cities and towns produce.

“One of the key measures moving forward to help reduce CO2 will be to lock up carbon not just in the trees but in the soil. A recent global study concluded that 26 per cent of carbon was locked up in trees, but the rest is held beneath the trees recycling hundreds of years of carbon production. This is why, on the 100th anniversary of the creation of Forestry Commission, we’re working really closely with woodland partners and farmers to not only protect and plant more trees, but to protect the soils.

Nick added: “One of the main threats to controlling excessive CO2 in the atmosphere is the prevention and management of increasingly prevalent tree disease such as Ash Dieback Disease. This will be a continuing challenge for woodland partners in the years ahead.”

The South Downs National Park has over 38,000 hectares of woodland which covers approximately a quarter of the landscape.