Future of the Environment

Tropical forests used to absorb carbon. Not any more

A view of a waterfall in the protected forest at the Welirang mountain in Malang, East Java province, February 10, 2010. Indonesia's Forestry Minister Zulkifli Hasan on Wednesday said he had revoked the land use permits for 23 mining and other firms operating in forested areas and may crack down further, indicating a tougher stance on environmental protection. Indonesia is under international pressure to do more to save its huge tracts of tropical forest, which act as carbon sinks and help reduce the amount of greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming. To match INTERVIEW INDONESIA-FOREST/ REUTERS/Sigit Pamungkas (INDONESIA - Tags: ENVIRONMENT POLITICS DISASTER SOCIETY IMAGES OF THE DAY) - GM1E62A1O5T01

Researchers have found that ending tropical deforestation would reduce about 8% of annual global emission. Image: REUTERS/Sigit Pamungkas

Zoe Schlanger
Environment reporter, Quartz
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Related topics:
Future of the EnvironmentUnited StatesForests
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