{"id":1848,"date":"2020-02-09T06:54:03","date_gmt":"2020-02-09T06:54:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/en\/?p=1848"},"modified":"2020-02-12T12:27:47","modified_gmt":"2020-02-12T12:27:47","slug":"all-you-need-is-trees-and-trees-again","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/en\/weather-climate\/all-you-need-is-trees-and-trees-again\/","title":{"rendered":"All you need is trees and trees again"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Trees in Israel\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/DqK7MezW6e4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>As extreme weather events and natural disasters are becoming more palpable and frequent, the global call to action on climate change is becoming louder. However, while political inertia, destructive agricultural practices, and the tenacity of the fossil fuel industry are making it hard to initiate wholesale changes towards a greener future, many communities, organizations, companies, but also countries turn to the simplest and most basic alternative there is \u2013 planting trees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>Things\nare not that easy<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Trees\nabsorb large amounts of CO<sub>2<\/sub> from the atmosphere, which they need for\ngrowth and oxygen production. Since CO<sub>2<\/sub> is a potent greenhouse gas\nand the number one driver of climate change, trees might be considered a secret\nweapon against climate change. Unfortunately, things are not that easy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While trees\nare indeed natural carbon absorbers, the sheer number of trees that are\nrequired, as well as the large area needed to plant them in order to achieve a\nsignificant and lasting impact, is close to overwhelming. Nonetheless, studies\nsuggest the <a href=\"https:\/\/science.sciencemag.org\/content\/365\/6448\/76\">\u201crestoration of forested land on a\nglobal scale could help capture atmospheric carbon and mitigate climate\nchange.\u201d<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Admittedly,\nplanting new trees is an excellent place to start and will undeniably be one of\nmany steps that have to be taken to tackle climate change. However, those\nendeavors will most likely be in vain if they\u2019re not accompanied by the\nrestoration of depleted forest cover and the conservation of existing forests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The good news is that governments of many\ncountries and the UN have come to acknowledge the importance of trees and\nvegetation in the fight against climate change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Worldwide, the percentage of planted forests is\non the rise. The total area of planted forests has increased by more than <a href=\"http:\/\/www.fao.org\/3\/a-i4793e.pdf\">105 million ha<\/a>\n(259 million acres) since 1990, at an average increase rate of 3.6 million ha\n(8.8 million acres) per year. In recent years, countries such as India,\nPakistan, and China have been planting trees on massive scales. Pakistan, for\ninstance, planted one billion trees in 2014 as part of its goal of 10 billion\ntrees. Ethiopia planted 353 million trees in one day this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In 2017, the United Nations developed a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.un.org\/esa\/forests\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/UNSPF_AdvUnedited.pdf?utm_source=InforuMail&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=Climate+change+and+forests+Gideon+Behar+2019%2F8\">strategic plan<\/a> that aims to restore and conserve global forests between 2017-2030. At the center of the plan is the objective of increasing worldwide forest cover by 3% by 2030. At the same time, scientific research will be conducted, aiming to expand international knowledge about afforestation practices. The plan is not compulsory, and it is entirely at each country\u2019s own discretion to what extent they decide to participate and as to how much they want to expand their forested areas. However, for the very first time, an official strategy has been developed that sets a worldwide target for forestation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/ugo-ykjsf518lZY-unsplash-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1852\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/ugo-ykjsf518lZY-unsplash-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/ugo-ykjsf518lZY-unsplash-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/ugo-ykjsf518lZY-unsplash-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/ugo-ykjsf518lZY-unsplash-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/ugo-ykjsf518lZY-unsplash-2048x1152.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption><em>PhoWorldwide, the percentage of planted forests is on the rise. The total area of planted forests has increased by more than 105 million ha since 1990to by&nbsp;Ugo \u00b0&nbsp;on&nbsp;Unsplash<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>Israel at the forefront of planting trees<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Over the\nlast century, Israel has been engaged in unprecedented afforestation measures\nas well as extensive forest management with respect to trees that were planted\nin an arid and semi-arid climate. Since then, Israel has become one of the very\nfew countries with a considerably greater forested area at the beginning of the\n21st century than it had at the beginning of the previous century. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>According\nto the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, \u201ctoday over 200 million trees in forests\nand woodlands cover some 300,000 acres in Israel.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Due to its\nefforts, Israel has acquired crucial expertise in dryland forestry, which has\ngarnered the country worldwide recognition. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For\ninstance, last year Kenya\u2019s Minister for the Environment and Forestry reached\nout to the forestry department of KKL-JNF (Jewish National Fund \u2013 a\nnongovernmental organization in Israel which functions as the Forest Service of\nIsrael) asking for consultation regarding the country\u2019s effort to increase its\nforest cover from 7% to 10%. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Israel\u2019s longstanding\nexperience in dryland forestry is applicable to a variety of places and\nclimates, and could potentially contribute to the preservation and sustainable\nmanagement of the world\u2019s forests. Most relevant, in this context, are\nsemi-arid regions or areas on the edge of the desert, such as the Sahel that\nstretches from east to west across Africa, large parts of Australia, and parts\nof China. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Since large\nsections of these semi-arid regions had once been covered with forests, there\nis an inherent potential for afforestation and rehabilitation efforts. In\naddition, due to decreased grazing and agricultural value, these areas have\nbecome available for other uses. Restoring forests in these climatic conditions\nwill have a positive impact on the livelihoods of many people working in tree\nfarming and wood production and also increase precipitation levels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It is important to note, that deforestation is a primary contributor to climate change, especially the continuous loss of the tropical rainforests in South America, Southeast Asia, and Africa. Deforestation in the tropics accounts for roughly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pnas.org\/content\/108\/24\/9899\">12-20%<\/a> of the anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. If the annual deforestation rate remains on the current trajectory, planting new trees will not exceed the number of trees that are being cut down each year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>This ZAVIT article was also published in&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/jewishjournal.com\/blogs\/310460\/all-you-need-is-trees-and-trees-again\/\">The Jewish Journal<\/a><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/jewishjournal.com\/blogs\/309487\/israeli-start-up-strives-to-cut-co2-emissions-using-food-waste\/\" target=\"_blank\">&nbsp;<\/a>on 02\/05\/2020.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As extreme weather events and natural disasters are becoming more palpable and frequent, the global call to action on climate &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":182,"featured_media":1855,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[10,8],"tags":[],"acf":[],"post-meta-fields":{"_edit_lock":["1581511171:11"],"_oembed_b0904f7e2cfeba08d1c5dcef3a61d68f":["<iframe title=\"Trees in Israel\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/DqK7MezW6e4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>"],"_oembed_time_b0904f7e2cfeba08d1c5dcef3a61d68f":["1581231571"],"_edit_last":["11"],"subtitle":["Tu B\u2019shevat or the \u201cNew Year of the Tree,\u201d began as an agricultural holiday. Over time it has turned into the most important ecological day of the Jewish calendar, on which trees are planted all over Israel. Today, in times of the climate crisis, afforestation has become more crucial then ever"],"_subtitle":["field_59d3d36ea7fe1"],"_thumbnail_id":["1855"]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1848"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/182"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1848"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1848\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1881,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1848\/revisions\/1881"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1855"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1848"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1848"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1848"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}