Diminished biophysical cooling benefits of global forestation under rising atmospheric CO2
Abstract Forestation is a proposed solution for mitigating global warming through carbon sequestration. However, its biophysical effects through surface energy modulation, particularly under rising CO2 levels, is less understood. Here we investigate the biophysical effects of global potential forest...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2025-05-01
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| Series: | Nature Communications |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59547-y |
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| author | Fei Kan Hao Xu Shuchang Tang Josep Peñuelas Xu Lian Caspar T. J. Roebroek Nazhakaiti Anniwaer Kai Wang Shilong Piao |
| author_facet | Fei Kan Hao Xu Shuchang Tang Josep Peñuelas Xu Lian Caspar T. J. Roebroek Nazhakaiti Anniwaer Kai Wang Shilong Piao |
| author_sort | Fei Kan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Forestation is a proposed solution for mitigating global warming through carbon sequestration. However, its biophysical effects through surface energy modulation, particularly under rising CO2 levels, is less understood. Here we investigate the biophysical effects of global potential forestation on near-surface air temperature (T a ) under increasing CO2 concentrations using a land-atmosphere coupled model with slab ocean module. Our findings reveal that, under current climate conditions, the biophysical effect of global full-potential forestation can reduce land surface T a by 0.062 °C globally. However, this cooling benefit diminishes as CO2 rises. While elevated CO2 slightly alters evaporative local cooling via stomatal closure and adjustments in forestation-driven rainfall regimes, the dominant reduction stems from non-local mechanisms. Background climate shifts reorganize forestation-induced horizontal temperature advection, weakening remote cooling in the Northern Hemisphere. These findings highlight the necessity of incorporating dynamic forest management strategies to optimize mitigation potential under a changing climate. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-35d2c458a20747e0bfee1ab4ad44371e |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2041-1723 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nature Communications |
| spelling | doaj-art-35d2c458a20747e0bfee1ab4ad44371e2025-08-20T02:25:16ZengNature PortfolioNature Communications2041-17232025-05-0116111310.1038/s41467-025-59547-yDiminished biophysical cooling benefits of global forestation under rising atmospheric CO2Fei Kan0Hao Xu1Shuchang Tang2Josep Peñuelas3Xu Lian4Caspar T. J. Roebroek5Nazhakaiti Anniwaer6Kai Wang7Shilong Piao8Institute of Carbon Neutrality, Sino-French Institute for Earth System Science, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Peking UniversityInstitute of Carbon Neutrality, Sino-French Institute for Earth System Science, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Peking UniversityInstitute of Carbon Neutrality, Sino-French Institute for Earth System Science, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Peking UniversityNational Research Council of Spain (CSIC), Global Ecology Unit CREAF-CSIC-UABInstitute of Carbon Neutrality, Sino-French Institute for Earth System Science, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Peking UniversityEuropean Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC)Institute of Carbon Neutrality, Sino-French Institute for Earth System Science, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Peking UniversityInstitute of Carbon Neutrality, Sino-French Institute for Earth System Science, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Peking UniversityInstitute of Carbon Neutrality, Sino-French Institute for Earth System Science, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Peking UniversityAbstract Forestation is a proposed solution for mitigating global warming through carbon sequestration. However, its biophysical effects through surface energy modulation, particularly under rising CO2 levels, is less understood. Here we investigate the biophysical effects of global potential forestation on near-surface air temperature (T a ) under increasing CO2 concentrations using a land-atmosphere coupled model with slab ocean module. Our findings reveal that, under current climate conditions, the biophysical effect of global full-potential forestation can reduce land surface T a by 0.062 °C globally. However, this cooling benefit diminishes as CO2 rises. While elevated CO2 slightly alters evaporative local cooling via stomatal closure and adjustments in forestation-driven rainfall regimes, the dominant reduction stems from non-local mechanisms. Background climate shifts reorganize forestation-induced horizontal temperature advection, weakening remote cooling in the Northern Hemisphere. These findings highlight the necessity of incorporating dynamic forest management strategies to optimize mitigation potential under a changing climate.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59547-y |
| spellingShingle | Fei Kan Hao Xu Shuchang Tang Josep Peñuelas Xu Lian Caspar T. J. Roebroek Nazhakaiti Anniwaer Kai Wang Shilong Piao Diminished biophysical cooling benefits of global forestation under rising atmospheric CO2 Nature Communications |
| title | Diminished biophysical cooling benefits of global forestation under rising atmospheric CO2 |
| title_full | Diminished biophysical cooling benefits of global forestation under rising atmospheric CO2 |
| title_fullStr | Diminished biophysical cooling benefits of global forestation under rising atmospheric CO2 |
| title_full_unstemmed | Diminished biophysical cooling benefits of global forestation under rising atmospheric CO2 |
| title_short | Diminished biophysical cooling benefits of global forestation under rising atmospheric CO2 |
| title_sort | diminished biophysical cooling benefits of global forestation under rising atmospheric co2 |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59547-y |
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