A Review of the Role of Vegetal Ecosystems in CO 2 Capture

Giuseppe Di Vita, Manuela Pilato, Biagio Pecorino, Filippo Brun and Mario D’Amico
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Manuela Pilato: Faculty of Business, Law and Sport/Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Winchester, Sparkford Road, Winchester SO22 4NR, UK
Biagio Pecorino: Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Catania, Viale Santa Sofia 100, 95123 Catania, Italy
Filippo Brun: Department of Agricultural, Forest and Food Science, University of Torino, Largo Braccini, 2 Grugliasco, 10095 Torino, Italy
Mario D’Amico: Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Catania, Viale Santa Sofia 100, 95123 Catania, Italy

Sustainability, 2017, vol. 9, issue 10, 1-10

Abstract: The reduction of carbon emissions is a worldwide global challenge and represents the objective of many scientists that are trying to modify the role of carbon, turning a problem into an opportunity. The potential of CO 2 capture and storage by vegetal species is significant because of their capacity to absorb exceeding carbon emission. The purpose of the present paper is to draw a picture of the role of vegetal ecosystems on carbon fixation by identifying the most significant scientific contributions related to the absorption by vegetal species. In particular the aim of this paper is to examine different forms of CO 2 sequestration made by plants and crops involved in reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emission. Results highlight the important role played by agricultural soils, forests, perennial plants, and algae, looking at the overall reduction of carbon emissions. In addition, results show that some bioenergy crops allow substantial storage of carbon dioxide, providing a significant contribution to climate change mitigation.

Keywords: CO 2 capture; CO 2 storage; agricultural sustainability; carbon fixation; forest plants; bioenergy crops; perennial plants; annual plants (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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