IPCC: Mitigation

The IPCC's AR4 Working Group on mitigation has published its summary for policymakers. Land use, land use change, and forestry (LULUCF) is the key area of interest to the ecological community. Between 1970 and 2004 direct green house emissions from LULUCF, not including removals, increased by 40%. Current mitigation technologies and practices highlighted by the IPCC in this area included:

• Improved crop and grazing land management to increase soil carbon storage
• Restoration of cultivated peaty soils and degraded lands
• Improved farming practices (manure and fertiliser management)
• Dedicated energy crops to replace fossil fuel use
• Increased forest cover

The report highlighted that greater research may lead to:

• Tree species improvements to increase biomass productivity and carbon sequestration
• Improved remote sensing technologies for analysis of vegetation/ soil carbon sequestration potential and mapping land use change