For 151 years, Americans have celebrated arbor day, which is commemorated on the last Friday in April, and they to plant trees. It is now common to see business leaders, politicians and celebrities joining in this activity as a way to help curb the climate change.

We all know that the trees store carbon, provide habitat for Animals and plants, prevent erosion and create shade in cities. But as we have explained in detail in other forums, planting trees is not a panacea to solve environmental problems and complex social And for trees to produce benefits, they must be planted correctly, which is often not the case.

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It is impossible for humanity to extricate itself from climate change, as some proponents have suggested, even if trees they are part of the solution. Scientific assessments show that to avoid the worst consequences of climate change, governments, businesses and individuals around the world will need to make rapid and drastic efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Besides, to plant trees in the wrong place can have unintended consequences. For example, to plant trees in native grasslands, such as North American grasslands or African savannas, it can harm these valuable ecosystems.

To plant trees fast-growing non-native species in arid areas can also reduce the supply of water. And some planting programs trees top-down policies implemented by international organizations or national governments displace farmers and push them to clear forests elsewhere.

Large-scale tree-planting initiatives have failed in places from Sri Lanka to Turkey to Canada. In some places, tree species were not well adapted to local growing conditions. soil and climate. Elsewhere, the trees they have not been watered or fertilized. In some cases, local people removed trees that had been planted on their land without permission. And when trees die or are cut down, all the carbon they absorbed goes back into the atmosphere, negating the benefits of planting them.

Focus on tree growth

It’s time to change the plantation narrative trees grow trees. Most tree planting efforts involve digging a hole and planting a seedling in the ground, but the work doesn’t stop there. and planting trees diverts attention from promoting the regeneration of natural forests.

To get the benefits of tree plantation, these are expected to grow for a decade or more. Unfortunately, evidence suggests that reforested areas are often cleared again within a decade or two. We recommend that tree breeding efforts set goals for the area of ​​forest restored after 10, 20, or 50 years, rather than focusing on the number of seedlings planted.

Moreover, in some cases it may not even be necessary to actively plant trees. For example, much of the eastern United States was mined in the 18th and 19th centuries. But over the past century, when nature has been left to its own devices, vast areas of forest have grown back without people planting trees.

Support culture campaigns

It is expected that the culture of trees receive unprecedented financial, political and social support in the years to come, as part of the United Nations Decade of Ecosystem Restoration and ambitious initiatives like the Bonn Challenge and the World Economic Forum’s 1t.org campaign to conserve, restore and grow 1 trillion trees. It would be a huge waste to waste this unique opportunity.

Here are the main guidelines that we and others have offered to improve the results of planting campaigns. trees.

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Existing forests must also be kept standing. Global Forest Watch, an online platform that monitors forests around the world, estimates that Earth lost an area of ​​rainforest the size of New Mexico in 2020.

It is much more effective to prevent the felling of existing forests than to try to rebuild them. And existing forests provide benefits now, rather than decades in the future after they are destroyed. trees mature.

Protecting existing forests often requires providing alternative income to people who maintain trees on their land instead of cutting or cultivating it. It is also important to strengthen the application of protected areas and to promote timber supply chains and Farm products which do not involve the felling of forests.

* Professors of restoration ecology and forest restoration at the University of California, Santa Cruz and the University of São Paulo.

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