Forests failing

Scientists have warned that the world will have to reduce carbon emissions to net zero sooner than 2050, after they found that tropical forests are losing their ability to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Climate change models predict that forests in Africa and the Amazon will act as sinks for carbon emissions well into the second half of this century. But a new study, based on ground surveys of 300,000 trees over 30 years in the two regions, found that the Amazon could flip to become a net carbon emitter in as little as 15 years, with Africa set to follow.