Global potential for natural regeneration in deforested tropical regions.

Publisher: Nature Publishing Group Country of Publication: England NLM ID: 0410462 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1476-4687 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 00280836 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Nature Subsets: MEDLINE

Publication: Basingstoke : Nature Publishing Group
Original Publication: London, Macmillan Journals ltd.

Conservation of Natural Resources*/economics ; Conservation of Natural Resources*/methods ; Conservation of Natural Resources*/trends ; Forestry*/economics ; Forestry*/methods ; Forestry*/trends ; Forests* ; Trees*/growth & development ; Trees*/physiology ; Tropical Climate* ; Environmental Restoration and Remediation*/economics ; Environmental Restoration and Remediation*/methods ; Environmental Restoration and Remediation*/trends; Brazil ; Carbon Sequestration ; China ; Colombia ; Indonesia ; Mexico ; Geographic Mapping ; Biodiversity ; Decision Making

Extensive forest restoration is a key strategy to meet nature-based sustainable development goals and provide multiple social and environmental benefits ¹ . Yet achieving forest restoration at scale requires cost-effective methods ² . Tree planting in degraded landscapes is a popular but costly forest restoration method that often results in less biodiverse forests when compared to natural regeneration techniques under similar conditions ³ . Here we assess the current spatial distribution of pantropical natural forest (from 2000 to 2016) and use this to present a model of the potential for natural regeneration across tropical forested countries and biomes at a spatial resolution of 30 m. We estimate that an area of 215 million hectares-an area greater than the entire country of Mexico-has potential for natural forest regeneration, representing an above-ground carbon sequestration potential of 23.4 Gt C (range, 21.1-25.7 Gt) over 30 years. Five countries (Brazil, Indonesia, China, Mexico and Colombia) account for 52% of this estimated potential, showcasing the need for targeting restoration initiatives that leverage natural regeneration potential. Our results facilitate broader equitable decision-making processes that capitalize on the widespread opportunity for natural regeneration to help achieve national and global environmental agendas.
Competing Interests: Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.
(© 2024. The Author(s).)

Erratum in: Nature. 2024 Dec 6. doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-08481-y. (PMID: 39643651)

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20241211

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