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Investing in forest conservation, stewardship, and reforestation is key to fighting climate change and reversing ecological loss. The benefits of these investments more than justify the costs (read our blog on “The Power of Forests to Slow Climate Change”). As climate and environmental programs face unprecedented assault at the federal level, we need to shift our efforts toward opportunities at the state and local level. Fortunately, we continue to make progress toward climate goals in cities and states throughout the country, including in New York State.
Over 60% (18.6 million acres) of New York State is forested, about three-quarters of which is in private ownership. New York forests currently offset about 8% (25 million metric tons) of the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from fossil fuels produced annually in the state. The NY Climate Act calls for zero net GHG emissions by 2050, relying on forests to offset about 15% of GHG emissions per year (~60 MMT) from energy-intensive industries. That means we need to increase the sequestration capacity of New York forests by nearly two and a half times over the next 25 years to achieve these goals.
The Climate Act’s Scoping Plan calls for the development of a Statewide Forestry Plan that details strategies for reforesting an additional 1.7 million acres across the state by 2040. A draft plan is expected to be released for public comment in the spring of 2025. This is a tall order, especially since statewide carbon sequestration rates have been dropping over the past 30 years as forest land is lost to development and poor management. To reverse this trend, New York State has set a goal of planting at least 25 million trees by 2033. The goal is intended to invigorate tree planting efforts through programs such as Regenerate NY and the Establishing Large Forests grant programs and to send a market signal to the private tree nurseries needed to meet the goal.
People ask, “where are we going to plant all these trees?” We actually have more than enough room without competing with valuable agricultural lands. The Nature Conservancy and American Forests have developed a web-based “Reforestation Hub” that maps out relatively low-cost and feasible options to restore forest across the contiguous U.S. The Hub estimates that over 5.3 million acres of land may be available for reforestation in New York State, including in abandoned and low productivity pasture, urban open space, transport corridors, and floodplains. The vast majority of this land is privately-owned and may have alternative uses, so reforesting all of this land is unrealistic. Planting one-third of the total over the next 25 years (the State’s current goal), while undoubtedly ambitious, seems feasible with sustained resources and support. Many of these resources are already available.
Mapping forest carbon stocks accurately over time is a key tool for tracking progress toward carbon sequestration goals. Mapping is also incredibly helpful in focussing our energy on land areas where forest projects can maximize value. The Climate and Applied Forest Research Institute (CAFRI) at SUNY ESF has developed such a tool, called the New York Forest Carbon Assessment. The tool tracks changes in forest carbon stocks over time and identifies marginal and transitional lands (see map below) that can be targeted for reforestation, avoiding conflict with other important land uses. The latest analysis found more than 1.4 million acres of marginal/transitional land available throughout the state.
Planting a tree is an exercise in patience and perspective. Growing millions of acres of healthy and resilient forests will take a concerted and sustained effort over many years. It will also require a fundamental change in our relationship with the land, including in urban landscapes where most of us live and directly benefit from more trees. In more rural places, where larger forested areas cross a patchwork of mostly private ownership, we need more community coordination, education and outreach, and landowner incentives and technical assistance. We also need more trained foresters with an understanding of carbon sequestration and ecological health. A sustained panoply of favorable policies and incentive programs are needed to assist landowners, such as the ones highlighted in our blog, “Forest Health Incentive Programs in New York“. Finally, we need to scale up native plant nurseries capable of supplying millions of regionally grown conservation-grade trees (i.e., small and cost-effective for large scale plantings).
Find out more about our approach to farming and land stewardship.
