Carbon demonstration and Biodiversity Atlas

The UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) recently published a demonstration atlas which highlights areas where high carbon content and high biodiversity overlap, showing that reducing emissions from land use change activities like deforestation can combat climate change and biodiversity loss. The atlas aims to show the potential value of spatial analyses as a tool to assist countries in maximizing biodiversity benefits whilst reducing carbon emissions from land use change.

Many ecosystems that are high in carbon are also high in biodiversity, particularly in tropical regions. Emissions from land use change, primarily deforestation, contribute to an estimated 20 per cent of total anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. A reduction in these carbon emissions is likely to be important in mitigating the impacts of climate change.

To view the atlas, click here

For another newslink about the atlas click here