Study: Larger, older trees may slow global warming

The older the tree, the more effectively it can remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, according to an AFP report. As such, it is possible that certain forests may play a role in slowing global warming.

The findings overturned the conventional view that old, large trees are relatively unproductive in absorbing heat-trapping greenhouse gasses. Out of the 400 tree species that were studied, the bigger and older specimens grew the fastest and trapped the most carbon, according to the report.

“This makes forests a so-called carbon sink, although their contribution is a hotly-debated issue in the climate-change sage,” the report said.