Drever CR, Cook-Patton SC, Akhter F, Badiou PH, Chmura GL, Davidson SJ, Desjardins RL, Dyk A, Fargione JE, Fellows M, Filewod B, Hessing-Lewis M, Jayasundara S, Keeton WS, Kroeger T, Lark TJ, Le E, Leavitt SM, LeClerc ME, Lemprière TC, Metsaranta J, McConkey B, Neilson E, St-Laurent GP, Puric-Mladenovic D, Rodrigue S, Soolanayakanahally RY, Spawn SA, Strack M, Smyth C, Thevathasan N, Voicu M, Williams CA, Woodbury PB, Worth DE, Xu Z, Yeo S, and Kurz WA
Alongside the steep reductions needed in fossil fuel emissions, natural climate solutions (NCS) represent readily deployable options that can contribute to Canada's goals for emission reductions. We estimate the mitigation potential of 24 NCS related to the protection, management, and restoration of natural systems that can also deliver numerous co-benefits, such as enhanced soil productivity, clean air and water, and biodiversity conservation. NCS can provide up to 78.2 (41.0 to 115.1) Tg CO 2 e/year (95% CI) of mitigation annually in 2030 and 394.4 (173.2 to 612.4) Tg CO 2 e cumulatively between 2021 and 2030, with 34% available at ≤CAD 50/Mg CO 2 e. Avoided conversion of grassland, avoided peatland disturbance, cover crops, and improved forest management offer the largest mitigation opportunities. The mitigation identified here represents an important potential contribution to the Paris Agreement, such that NCS combined with existing mitigation plans could help Canada to meet or exceed its climate goals., (Copyright © 2021 The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of Science. No claim to original U.S. Government Works. Distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 (CC BY).)