Carbon sequestration, as a biological process, refers to the capture and long-term storage of inorganic carbon, primarily in the form of atmospheric CO₂, into organic and inorganic carbon pools mediated by living organisms. In terrestrial ecosystems, plants, fungi, and microbes fix CO₂ via photosynthesis and chemoautotrophy, transferring carbon into biomass, soils, and stable humic substances. In aquatic systems, phytoplankton, macroalgae, and microbial communities incorporate CO₂ into organic matter, some of which is exported to deeper waters and sediments through the biological pump. Biological carbon sequestration regulates carbon cycling, ecosystem productivity, and contributes to the buffering of atmospheric CO₂ concentrations.
What if it were possible to take a very slow geological process, one that takes thousands of years in nature, and speed it up so that it happens within hours, in order to slow the rate of global warming?
Earth Sciences
Dec 9, 2025
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Coastal wetlands, like salt marshes, keep pace with sea-level rise by accumulating sediment and burying organic carbon in their soils, an important natural process that also helps sequester carbon. Accurately measuring this ...
Environment
Dec 4, 2025
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24
The cost of forest restoration is a considerable obstacle, sparking discussions in recent years about how to make it economically viable. Since native wood management, carbon credits, and payment for ecosystem services are ...
Ecology
Dec 1, 2025
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In a step toward better understanding how the ocean sequesters carbon, new findings from UC Santa Barbara researchers and collaborators challenge the current view of how carbon dioxide is "fixed" in the sunless ocean depths. ...
Earth Sciences
Dec 1, 2025
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28
In a new study published in New Phytologist on Nov. 23, Prof. Zeng Fanjiang's team from the Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, has identified the key pathway driving the soil carbon ...
Ecology
Nov 28, 2025
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17
New research warns that Africa's forests, once vital allies in the fight against climate change, have turned from a carbon sink into a carbon source.
Environment
Nov 28, 2025
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High levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide intensify climate change, but high carbon dioxide levels can also stimulate plant growth. Plant growth removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, partially mitigating the effects ...
Earth Sciences
Nov 25, 2025
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A new study led by the Wuhan Botanical Garden of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (WBG, CAS) has identified a unique trait in the aquatic plant Ottelia alismoides—it can simultaneously employ three distinct CO₂-concentrating ...
Plants & Animals
Nov 25, 2025
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19
Florida State University oceanographers have discovered a significant connection between small-scale microbial processes and ecosystem-wide dynamics, offering new insights into the mechanisms driving marine carbon storage.
Earth Sciences
Nov 24, 2025
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51
An innovative alternative to concrete could enable important coastal restoration work to take place. The material Xiriton, made with local grass species and seawater, captures CO2 instead of emitting it, as conventional concrete ...
Ecology
Nov 24, 2025
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