Brown bag lunch: Mapping of irrecoverable carbon in Earth’s ecosystems with Conservation International

Introduction of a  groundbreaking study by Conservation International scientists. For the first time, as a result of this study, CI has obtained a map of the important landscapes that humanity cannot afford to lose in our effort to stabilize Earth’s warming climate.

These are diverse and unique landscapes — from mangroves and wetlands, to peatlands and old-growth forests — which hold high concentrations of “irrecoverable carbon” collected over hundreds or even thousands of years. We refer to the carbon stored in these special places as “irrecoverable” because it cannot be replaced before 2050 — the year by which the world needs to reach net-zero emissions.

The study pinpoints the exact locations where irrecoverable carbon exists, showing that half of it is located on just 3.3 percent of the planet’s land area. Since irrecoverable carbon is concentrated in a relatively small area of land, these climate-critical places must be top conservation priorities. These landscapes should be top candidates for protection under “30x30” — the global effort to conserve 30% of lands and waters by the year 2030. Conservation International is determined to see this happen.

The overlap of irrecoverable carbon with biodiversity and Indigenous lands is significant — putting the protection of these landscapes at the very center of our collective mission. To highlight this overlap and explain our key findings, we have released an accompanying report, which you can read here.

You can also view our latest blog post; an op-ed by the study’s lead authors Monica Noon and Allie Goldstein; as well as coverage in The Guardian. For additional information and to view some of the study’s maps, please visit our website here.