{"id":153052,"date":"2021-07-24T23:38:23","date_gmt":"2021-07-24T21:38:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=153052"},"modified":"2021-07-24T23:38:25","modified_gmt":"2021-07-24T21:38:25","slug":"californias-carbon-mitigation-efforts-may-be-thwarted-by-climate-change-itself","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=153052","title":{"rendered":"California\u2019s carbon mitigation efforts may be thwarted by climate change itself"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

UCI study: Higher heat will limit ecosystem\u2019s role in removing atmospheric CO2<\/p>\n\n\n\n

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA \u2013 IRVINE<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Research News<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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IMAGE: <\/strong>REDWOOD FORESTS SUCH AS THIS ONE IN CALIFORNIA\u2019S HUMBOLDT COUNTY ARE KEY COMPONENTS OF THE STATE\u2019S CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION EFFORTS, BUT UCI RESEARCHERS SUGGEST THAT ONGOING GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS MAY\u2026 view more <\/a>CREDIT: SHANE COFFIELD \/ UCI<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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Irvine, Calif., July 22, 2021 \u2013 To meet an ambitious goal of carbon neutrality by 2045, California\u2019s policymakers are relying in part on forests and shrublands to remove CO2<\/sub> from the atmosphere, but researchers at the University of California, Irvine warn that future climate change may limit the ecosystem\u2019s ability to perform this service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a paper published today in the American Geophysical Union journal AGU Advances<\/em>, the UCI Earth system scientists stressed that rising temperatures and uncertain precipitation will cause a decrease in California\u2019s natural carbon storage capacity of as much as 16 percent under an extreme climate projection and of nearly 9 percent under a more moderate scenario.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis work highlights the conundrum that climate change poses to the state of California,\u201d said lead author Shane Coffield, a UCI Ph.D. candidate in Earth system science. \u201cWe need our forests and other plant-covered areas to provide a \u2018natural climate solution\u2019 of removing carbon dioxide from the air, but heat and drought caused by the very problem we\u2019re trying to solve could make it more difficult to achieve our objectives.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trees and plants draw CO2<\/sub> from the atmosphere when they photosynthesize, and some of the carbon ends up stored in their biomass or the soil. California\u2019s climate strategy depends in part on enhanced carbon storage to offset some of the emissions from transportation, power generation and other sources. The combination of this natural carbon sequestration system and measures to promote green energy is hoped to help the state reach its target of not contributing net carbon to the environment by 2045.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the UCI scientists suggest that an even more aggressive approach to curtailing emissions may be necessary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe emissions scenario that we follow will have a large effect on the carbon storage potential of our forests,\u201d said co-author James Randerson, who holds the Ralph J. & Carol M. Cicerone Chair in Earth System Science at UCI. \u201cA more moderate emissions scenario in which we convert to more renewable energy sources leads to about half of the ecosystem carbon [sequestration] loss compared to a more extreme emissions scenario.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Coffield said that current climate models are not in agreement about California\u2019s future precipitation, but it\u2019s probable that the northern part of the state will get wetter and the southern part drier. He also said that coastal areas of Central and Northern California and low- and mid-elevation mountain areas \u2013 sites of large offset projects \u2013 are the most likely to lose some of their carbon sequestration powers over the next several decades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition, the researchers were able to estimate the effects of climate change on specific tree species. They project that coast redwoods will be constrained to the far northern part of their range by the end of the century and that hotter, drier conditions will favor oak trees at the expense of conifers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the study used statistical modeling to peer into the future of the state\u2019s ecosystems, the research also highlights the importance of present-day drought and wildfire as key mechanistic drivers of carbon sequestration losses. Other studies have estimated that the 2012-2015 drought killed more than 40 percent of ponderosa pines in the Sierra Nevada range. Another issue the researchers describe is the loss of trees from California\u2019s worsening wildfire situation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe hope that this work will inform land management and climate policies so that steps can be taken to protect existing carbon stocks and tree species in the most climate-vulnerable locations,\u201d Randerson said. \u201cEffective management of fire risk is essential for limiting carbon [sequestration] losses throughout much of the state.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Joining Coffield and Randerson on this project were Kyle Hemes, from the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment at Stanford University; Charles Koven, from the Climate & Ecosystem Sciences Division at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory; and Michael Goulden, UCI professor of Earth system science and ecology & evolutionary biology. The study received funding from the National Science Foundation, the UC National Laboratory Fees Research Program, and the California Strategic Growth Council\u2019s Climate Change Research Program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From EurekAlert!<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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<\/p>\n\n\n\n

via Watts Up With That?<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/ift.tt\/3eS6PAU<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

July 24, 2021<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

UCI study: Higher heat will limit ecosystem\u2019s role in removing atmospheric CO2 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA \u2013 IRVINE Research News Irvine, Calif., July 22, 2021 \u2013 To meet an ambitious goal of carbon neutrality by 2045, California\u2019s policymakers are relying in part on forests and shrublands to remove CO2 from the atmosphere, but researchers at the University […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121246920,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","_crdt_document":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-153052","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","has-post-thumbnail","fallback-thumbnail"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paxLW1-DOA","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":231249,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=231249","url_meta":{"origin":153052,"position":0},"title":"Claim: California\u2019s Carbon Mitigation Efforts May be Thwarted by Climate Change Itself","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"27\/11\/2022","format":false,"excerpt":"\"We need our forests and other plant-covered areas to provide a 'natural climate solution' of removing carbon dioxide from the air, but heat and drought caused by the very problem we're trying to solve could make it more difficult to achieve our\u00a0objectives.\"","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/00Redwood-National-And-State-Parks.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/00Redwood-National-And-State-Parks.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/00Redwood-National-And-State-Parks.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/00Redwood-National-And-State-Parks.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/00Redwood-National-And-State-Parks.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":414879,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=414879","url_meta":{"origin":153052,"position":1},"title":"Adam Carolla and Joe Rogan Are Right, Government Is to Blame for the Severity of L.A.\u2019s Fires, Not Climate Change","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"27\/11\/2025","format":false,"excerpt":"On a recent episode of The Joe Rogan Experience podcast, comedian Adam Carolla and host, Joe Rogan, pointed out that Gov. 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