Such is the power of mangroves; their carbon sequestration rate is an estimated 300kg over a 25-year growth period. Beyond the 25 years, mangroves stop absorbing CO2, but due to their unique root system, it is locked away for millennia in the waterlogged soil underneath.
12t is widely regarded as a conservative estimate of an average annual footprint in regions such as the UK. Everyone and every area is different, but typically falls within the 9- to 15-ton range.
Funding 40 mangroves in a year sequesters the same amount of CO2 (over 25 years) as that emitted by an annual carbon footprint of 12 tons.
However, one side of the equation is putting harmful excess CO2 into the atmosphere with immediate effect, adding to global warming, whereas the other, 'repairing' side, happens gradually over 25 years. Eventually, one catches up with the other to fully counterbalance, but our precious and struggling planet does not have this luxury of time on its side.
In the app, we provide an Impact Score indicator that attributes a carbon sequestration figure of 50kg per tree (rather than 300kg). 50kg is a conservative estimate of the mangrove tree's CO2 impact from the seedling stage to 2030, which is widely recognised as a critical tipping point for the planet.
Planting approximately 250 mangrove trees in a year is estimated to have a sequestration impact of over 12t of CO2e by 2030. This, coupled with focusing on reducing your annual carbon footprint at source, will likely put you personally into a positive zone and contribute towards counterbalancing some of the inevitable excesses being caused by others.
