SCIENCE TALK: Developing Carbon Policies and Industrial Operations

Developing Carbon Policies and Industrial Operations Factoring Carbon Emissions from Wildfires and Heatwaves

Despite the forest paradox that heat-stressed forests act as huge carbon emitters and heat storage rather than carbon sequestration, the current Paris Agreement and carbon neutrality scheme do not reflect these naturally occurring carbon emissions in discussing reforestation or carbon balance. In recent years, heat waves and wildfires have become more prevalent and grown larger. The biggest biome forests in the world have transitioned from carbon sinks to super-carbon emitters that exceed annual carbon sequestration ability. Management practices focusing explicitly on reforestation or afforestation can worsen ongoing heat waves and wildfires, further accelerating climate change. In this talk, we will review the current status quo of how science can contribute to making carbon policies and governance align with our changing global environment, re-examining the limitations of traditional science in making reasonable decisions and coping with the global crisis and carbon mitigation. Furthermore, we will contemplate new strategies and specific measures for utilizing space information from satellites to better regulate timber business activities in the future.