One successful area of carbon removal is the restoration and protection of mangrove forests, about half of which have been lost over the past two decades due to human impact. Growing along three quarters of the Earth’s tropical and subtropical coastlines, mangroves play a vital role in absorbing CO2 from the atmosphere (they absorb carbon from the air, storing it in their roots and branches). However, mangroves are also a major part of our fragile ocean ecosystem, with 90% of marine organisms spending part of their lives in this ecosystem, and 80% of the world’s global fish catches are dependent on mangroves.
Recognising the enormous potential of scaling up blue carbon to achieve the United Nations goal of keeping the global temperature increase below 1.5 degrees, the Pelorus Foundation, through their Climate Investment Fund, has partnered with global ocean health company Running Tide, to cultivate kelp (one of the largest species of seaweed) in Iceland, which are also highly efficient at absorbing carbon.