Temporary carbon removal projects could play a more significant role in tackling methane emissions than previously recognised, according to a new study that re-evaluates the value of nature-based schemes.

The study, which appears in Nature Climate Change, shows that although afforestation and reforestation projects store carbon only temporarily, this trait can be used to counter methane, the second largest driver of global warming.

Methane heats the planet far more intensely than carbon dioxide in the short to medium term but dissipates quickly. Carbon dioxide causes a smaller temperature rise per tonne yet stays in the atmosphere for centuries.

The authors argue that temporary CO2 removals can neutralise methane’s powerful but brief impact at lower cost than permanent removals, which require expensive long-term monitoring and storage. They warn that relying on temporary removals for CO2 could burden future generations with permanent storage obligations, making methane offsetting a better fit.

They estimate that 87 temporary removals of one tonne of CO2 lasting 30 years each would counter the warming effect of one tonne of methane, offering governments a practical formula for deciding when to cut methane directly and when to offset it.

“Meeting the goals of the Paris Agreement requires reducing temperatures in both the short and long term,” said professor Ben Groom, Dragon Capital Chair in Biodiversity Economics at the University of Exeter Business School, and a co-author of the study alongside the economists professor Dr Wilfried Rickels from the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, and professor Frank Venmans from LSE.

“Rather than seeing the temporary nature of land-based carbon removals as a weakness, we show that it can be an advantage when used to counter methane’s short-lived warming. This approach could unlock new climate finance for nature-based solutions and deliver immediate relief from temperature stress.”

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