Reforestation Done Right Is a Multi-Tasking Climate Solution Provisionally Accepted

Jad Daley^1*

• ¹American Forests, United States

Reforestation is an essential component of natural climate solutions to help achieve climate goals based on multiple analyses worldwide (Marvin et al. 2023;Bastin et al. 2019;Griscom et al. 2017). This Frontiers contribution makes the argument that to unlock this potential we must advance the science of "right tree, right place" to a new level of customization for climate resilience, mitigation, and co-benefits such as biodiversity while also strategically using reforestation to enhance fiber supplies to support diverse forest products that offer climate change mitigation benefits. This contribution will address three issues that underpin execution of reforestation with the necessary scientific rigor and climate strategy to achieve these outcomes: 1) how to design reforestation for climate resilience; 2) how to leverage reforestation to supply diverse forest products; and 3) how to integrate climate goals with other reforestation outcomes.The fundamentals of reforestation for climate benefit are undisputed:• Increasing the number of trees on our planet will create more potential for carbon sequestration (Bastin et al. 2019) as long as the right tree species are used to assure long-term health and resilience, and trees are grown in ecologically appropriate locations.• While no single tree is a permanent source of carbon sequestration and storage, these benefits can be long lasting-with the lifespan of trees often exceeding 100 years-and together the cycle of trees growing and dying in a forest creates perpetual carbon storage through the carbon cycle (U.S. Congressional Research Service, 2023).• Tree planting is the most resource intensive reforestation approach and should be prioritized to locations where regeneration will not otherwise occur. This includes the expanding acreage of forestlands burned so severely that regeneration is impaired by factors such as soil condition and seed availability (Higuera et al. 2021).• With so much to gain, here are three principles we must converge on to capture the full potential in reforestation for climate change, biodiversity, and other goals.1. We must reforest for climate resilience by using special forestry techniques.All the benefits of reforestation hinge on our ability to grow forests that can survive and thrive in a changing climate. To help meet this need, the non-profit organization, American Forests, has spent the last five years developing and implementing a particular four-part model for climate-resilient reforestation.These four elements include: 1) assessing each site to for resilience characteristics and site preparation; 2) aligning tree species and genetics for resilience; 3) identifying a resilient planting design; and 4) putting in place appropriate provisions for adaptive management. This approach is embodied in the climate-resilient planting design for the Camp Fire Burn Scar in the U.S. State of California (Rempel et al.
The first step is to assess what site preparation is needed and identify microsites of natural resilience on each landscape that will be best suited for planting or other regeneration techniques.The second step is to use climate data to identify the most resilient mix of tree species for that site and to grow seedlings using seed sourced from trees that show natural resilience to the current and projected climate conditions for that site. This tree selection must balance different variables, from how quickly different species will regenerate to the resilience and resource benefits different species can provide.As a third step, the density, grouping and spacing of trees must be strategically designed to withstand future climate stress, such as increased drought and heightened wildfire risk, while also facilitating forestry actions such as prescribed fire that help the forest remain resilient.The final step is a structured commitment from project partners to monitor each reforestation site and implement adaptive management to adjust the structure and composition of the regenerating forest as dictated by the way that forest is responding to climate conditions.With this kind of rigorous approach, actors across the reforestation movement can grow resilient forests back even in the most challenging and high benefit settings, like areas severely burned by wildfire that will not recover naturally and arid agricultural lands that are being brought back into native forest.
Leading climate models to achieve Net Zero by 2050 (e.g., Project Drawdown) agree we will not only need more carbon sequestration from the forest sector, but also a range of different forest-based products that offer a lower greenhouse gas footprint than alternatives made from non-renewable and more energy intensive materials.While some critics (e.g. Capturing this opportunity will require a recognition that not every acre of forest needs to be maximized for older age classes. If we embrace the techniques of high production forestry on some parts of the land base-including plantations managed with shorter rotations-we have potential to ease pressure on other forestlands that we might choose to place in a different condition and management regime emphasizing other ecological outcomes.
With the right approach, advancing reforestation to achieve carbon sequestration goals can be done harmoniously with other needs, such as protection of water quality and biodiversity.Just consider that over 80 percent of the world's wildlife lives in forests (United Nations, 2023) making the extent and quality of forest cover pivotal to stemming the biodiversity crisis. That's why reforestation is so essential for both increasing the extent of priority forest habitats and better connecting them.An example from the U.S. is taking place in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas, where over 90 percent of native thornforest (Tamaulipan Calcareous Thornscrub) has been cleared for agriculture and urbanization. Reforestation of these forests has strong carbon benefits (Navar-Chaidez et al. 2008), yet these forests are also home to more than 500 species of birds, more than 300 species of butterflies, and rare mammals such as the ocelot. Because of the decline of this forest, there are 45 state and federal listed species associated with this habitat that can benefit when these forests are restored.A collaboration led by the U.S. In conclusion, it is vital that forest advocates work collectively to advance the scientifically rigorous and holistic approach described here to maximize the potential in reforestation for climate change benefits and related concerns such as stemming the loss of biodiversity globally. If we can align on the three meta issues outlined above to set a consensus direction for the reforestation movement, then we can move onto critical capacity issues such as accelerating seed collection and nursery capacity. It is time to put right reforestation into motion at scale, as the climate crisis has not left a moment to waste.