Boosting Farm Yields to Restore Habitats Could Create Greenhouse Gas 'Sink'

New research into the potential for sparing land from food production to balance greenhouse gas emissions has shown that emissions from the UK farming industry could be largely offset by 2050.  This could be achieved if the UK increased agricultural yields and coupled this with expanding the areas of natural forests and wetlands to match its European neighbors.

The new study suggests that by upping forest cover from 12% to 30% of UK land over the next 35 years -- close to that of France and Germany, but still less than the European average -- and restoring 700,000 hectares of wet peatland, these habitats would act as a carbon 'sink':  sucking in and storing carbon.

This could be enough to meet government targets of 80% greenhouse gas reduction by 2050 for the farming industry.  Agriculture currently produces around 10% of all the UK's damaging greenhouse gas emissions.

The new woodlands and wetlands would be more than just a carbon sink, say researchers. They would help support declining UK wildlife -- including many species of conservation concern -- provide more areas for nature recreation, and help to reduce flooding.

However, to make space for habitat restoration, and to meet rising levels of food demand, land sparing would depend on increases in farm yields, so that food needs can be met from less farmland.

The new study, published Wednesday in the journal Nature Climate Change, is the first to show that land sparing has the technical potential to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions at a national scale.

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