Tropical forests are a net carbon source based on aboveground measurements of gain and loss

TLDR

Tropical forests' role as a carbon sink or source remains debated, with studies ranging from large sinks to modest sources. The study analyzed 12 years of MODIS satellite data to track annual changes in aboveground woody vegetation carbon density across the tropics. The analysis shows tropical forests are a net carbon source, with deforestation and forest carbon loss twice the gains from forest growth. Baccini et al., Science, p.

Abstract

Forests out of balance Are tropical forests a net source or net sink of atmospheric carbon dioxide? As fundamental a question as that is, there still is no agreement about the answer, with different studies suggesting that it is anything from a sizable sink to a modest source. Baccini et al. used 12 years of MODIS satellite data to determine how the aboveground carbon density of woody, live vegetation has changed throughout the entire tropics on an annual basis. They find that the tropics are a net carbon source, with losses owing to deforestation and reductions in carbon density within standing forests being double that of gains resulting from forest growth. Science , this issue p. 230