[Reading Science] Why the 'Bangguijaengi' Elephant Is Essential for Carbon Neutrality

US Research Team, "Restoring Wildlife Ecosystems, a Solution to Climate Change"
Helps Recover Forest Carbon Sequestration Capacity
Restoring 9 Key Species Could Contribute 95% of Annual Reduction Needed by 2100

A study has found that protecting and breeding wild animals such as African elephants can enhance the ability of trees and soil to absorb carbon dioxide, thereby helping to combat climate change.

On the 27th of last month, a research team from the United States, including Oswald Schmitz, a professor at Yale University's School of the Environment, published a paper containing these findings in the international academic journal Nature Climate Change.

▲As tropical rainforests are destroyed, wild ecosystems are facing the threat of extinction.
[Photo by Science]

When we commonly consider solutions to climate change, we rarely think about wild animals. In fact, many people believe that elephants harm the environment by eating too many plants and producing methane through flatulence. However, for example, the antelopes living in the African Serengeti grasslands play a key role in carbon capture. Although they consume large amounts of grass, their droppings fertilize the soil, promoting the flourishing of wild grasslands and forests, which contributes to carbon dioxide capture. In reality, in the early 1900s, when livestock diseases caused a sharp decline in antelope populations in the Serengeti, the forests weakened, and frequent, intense wildfires turned the entire grassland into carbon emissions. After livestock diseases were controlled and antelope populations increased, the intensity and frequency of wildfires significantly decreased, and the Serengeti grasslands regained their forests and carbon absorption capacity. Restoring and protecting the functional roles of wild animals in ecosystems and returning nature to its natural state is very important and has been an overlooked solution to climate change, according to the research team.

The research team specifically emphasized the roles of nine wild animals: African forest elephants, American bison, fish, gray wolves, muskoxen, sea otters, sharks, whales, and antelopes. They stated that protecting these animals and increasing their populations could achieve a carbon capture effect equivalent to 95% of the annual reduction needed to meet the global carbon emission reduction target of 500 billion tons of CO2 by 2100. This could greatly help achieve the Paris Agreement goal of limiting the global average temperature rise to below 1.5 degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial levels. While many people emphasize the roles of forests, plants, and soil as means of carbon capture, it is important to realize that animals also have a significant indirect impact.

In an experiment conducted in the tropical forests of Guyana, Africa, the carbon storage capacity of the forest increased 3.5 to 4 times when the number of trees was increased sevenfold from 10 to 70. However, when the number of mammal species inhabiting the same area was increased sevenfold from 5 to 35 species, the forest's carbon storage capacity increased 4 to 5 times. This indicates that restoring and increasing wild animal ecosystems was more effective than simply increasing the number of trees.

The research team explained, "Many people worry about climate change and consider what actions to take, but they need to understand that animals can also help create the changes the Earth needs," adding, "There is practical potential for synergy between wildlife protection and carbon storage."