Can an increase in green cover help India lower its CO2 footprint?
It’s a familiar sight – politicians planting a sampling, then sporting a huge grin for the cameras and announcing they have taken a major step towards saving the world.
Here’s a report ( https://bit.ly/3qRAU77 ) that in my opinion seems to present a somewhat optimistic picture in this regard.
So how much potential indeed does afforestation have for CO2 emissions reduction?
Only moderate, and that too under the best case scenario.
Our specialty focus areas include 
Some reading and analyses I did a few years back ( https://lnkd.in/gu2R8hk ) showed that even really massive tree planting can at best decrease annual net CO2 emissions by about 3% – this is really the super best case scenario. Reducing deforestation might have a higher potential than aggressive afforestation.
Afforestation + de-deforestation together could bring about a 8-9% reduction in net CO2 emissions, in the super best case scenario.
Bottomline: Plant trees, it is a damn good idea, but don’t expect those nice chaps alone to save you from utter anarchy.
And, by the way, you may want to rethink about cutting down that tree in your backyard.
Down To Earth India – Diksha Punjabi
Grow-Trees.com – Supriya Patil
See my LinkedIn post on this topic
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