We’re Part of the Solution
The trio continues to work out the details of when the Senate will take up the measure and we expect to hear more on the timing soon.
The American Forest Foundation has long maintained that privately owned forests are a key part of the solution to climate change. America’s forests sequester 12 percent of U.S. carbon emissions and already supply most of the nation’s energy that comes from renewable sources.
And, privately owned forests have the potential of supplying as much as 20% of the country’s emissions reductions. By supporting more than one million family wage jobs and generating billions in economic returns for our nation’s communities, family forest owners create made in America jobs that stay in America – essential to helping our country’s economy.
To fully capture the potential climate mitigation and renewable energy in family forests, we’ll be watching the draft legislation to make certain it:
- allows family forest owners to participate in biomass energy markets;
- ensures family forest owners who want to participate, can sell carbon credits for the value of the carbon captured and stored in their trees and wood products;
- ensures that owners that don’t want to or can’t participate in selling carbon credits have access to other financial benefits if they agree to capture and store carbon in their trees;
- provides resources to help family forest owners adapt their forest management plans and practices to address the impacts of climate change (such as pests, pathogens, drought and fire).
A large part of the legislation will be focused on carbon emissions reduction. Forests are one of the few ways we can actually take carbon out of the air and reduce the carbon overload that causes climate change. At AFF, our focus will be on ensuring that family forests – that can collectively store up to 20% of U.S. carbon emissions -- are compensated for being such a large part of the solution.
