Scientists have discovered another reason why trees are vital to the health of our planet – and this time it’s not about the leaves.
As The Guardian reports, a team of researchers from the University of Birmingham has published a new study detailing how microbes in tree bark can absorb and break down methane.
Methane is a planet-warming gas, responsible for 30% of global warming since before the industrial revolution, according to The Guardian. It is sold as natural gas to be used as fuel, it seeps out of oil wells, and it is also a byproduct of livestock farming and rotting garbage in landfills. When you compare methane to the same amount of carbon dioxide, the methane traps up to 80 times more heat in the atmosphere.
Until now, it was thought that soil and the microbes in it were the only thing that absorbed and broke down methane, reports The Guardian. But researchers found that tropical forests had the highest methane uptake thanks to tree bark and warm, moist conditions that allow microbes to thrive.
According to The Guardian, Professor Vincent Gauci, who led the study, called it “a remarkable new way in which trees are providing a vital service to the climate.”
This is big news because our planet is overheating, with record high temperatures being reached in recent years. To cool temperatures, we need to reduce the release of heat-trapping gases into the atmosphere, including methane and carbon dioxide, both of which are absorbed by trees.
“Our findings suggest that planting more trees and reducing deforestation must certainly be important components of any approach to achieving this goal,” Gauci said, according to The Guardian.
Another recent study has found that the question of how to regrow lost trees is more complicated than it seems at first glance, reports The Guardian. We can let trees regrow naturally in deforested areas, which takes a long time but costs nothing; or we can actively plant trees for faster results. The study found that the best choice depends on the location, and that a combination of both approaches would be the most effective and efficient solution.
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