Knowra Carbon sink Carbon sink A system that absorbs more carbon from the atmosphere than it releases over a specified period. Carbon sinks can be natural or human-made, and their strength can vary over time.
Carbon cycle : The movement of carbon among the atmosphere, oceans, land, and living organisms. It tracks the exchanges that determine whether a system is a net sink or source.
Amazon rainforest : The largest tropical rainforest, spanning much of the Amazon Basin in South America. Its forests store vast quantities of carbon, though disturbance and climate stress can weaken uptake.
REDD+ : A United Nations framework encouraging developing countries to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation and conserve or enhance forest carbon stocks. It links forest conservation and carbon accounting to climate finance.
Climate change : Long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns, especially the rapid warming driven by human greenhouse-gas emissions. Weaker sinks leave more emitted carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, intensifying warming.
Additionality : The criterion that a claimed climate benefit would not have occurred without a particular intervention. It tests whether a project creates extra uptake rather than crediting an existing sink.
Carbon sequestration : The capture and long-term storage of carbon dioxide or other carbon compounds. Sequestration describes the storage processes that can sustain a sink.
Boreal forest : A circumpolar forest biome dominated by conifers across northern North America and Eurasia. Its trees and extensive soils store carbon across cold regions.
Blue carbon : Carbon captured and stored by coastal and marine ecosystems, especially mangroves, seagrasses, and tidal marshes. It identifies coastal ecosystems as potential targets for conservation and restoration.
Carbon budget : The maximum cumulative carbon dioxide emissions compatible with a specified limit on global warming. Reliable sink estimates affect how much additional emissions fit within a warming limit.
Permanence : The durability of a stored carbon removal against reversal into the atmosphere. Fire, harvest, or warming can undo biological storage that was counted as a sink.
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