Presented at the Restoring Water Cycles to Reverse Global Warming conference October 16th-18th, 2015 at Tufts University. www.bio4climate.org

1. RESTORING CARBON, WATER,
AND TEMPERATURE CYCLES
Tom Goreau
Biodiversity for a Livable Climate
Conference on Restoring Water Cycles
To Reverse Global Warming
October 17 2015

2. FLORESTA DA TIJUCA
RIO DE JANEIRO

4. ONE MAN PLANTS A FOREST

5. BEFORE AND AFTER
GREENING THE DESERT
JORDAN, GEOFF LAWTON

6. CARBON, WATER,
TEMPERATURE
• HIGH SOIL CARBON CAUSES HIGH WATER
RETENTION, MORE FERTILE SOILS
• THERE ARE MANY WAYS TO MANAGE SOILS TO
INCREASE SOIL CARBON
• SOIL CARBON COMES IN MANY FORMS, RANGES
THA LAST FROM VERY SHORT TO VERY LONG
TIMES
• BLACK SOIL CARBON LASTS LONGEST

7. WHOLE WATERSHED MANAGEMENT
• PREVENT SOIL EROSION
• RECYCLE NUTRIENTS ON LAND
• KEEP THEM OUT OF RIVERS, LAKES, AND
THE OCEAN WHERE THEY CAUSE
HARMFULLY ALGAE BLOOM AND KILL
CORAL REEFS AND FISHERIES

8. BALI
SUBAK

10. VETIVER GRASS, THE WORLD’S
BEST EROSION CONTROL PLANT

11. ROOTS GROW STRAIGHT DOWN
NEVER BECOMES A WEED

12. COMPLETELY
STOPS
EROSION.
BEST ROOFING
THATCH
BECAUSE OF
NATURAL
INSECTICIDE,
SEWAGE
TREATMENT,
NUTRIENT
TRAPPING,
CARBON
SINK,
RENEWABLE
BIOMASS
PRODUCTION

13. WATER & TEMPERATURE
• MORE THAN HALF OF SOLAR RADIATION ON LAND
EVAPORATES WATER, ABSORBING HUGE
AMOUNTS OF HEAT AND LOWERING LAND
TEMPERATURE
• ABOUT 60% OF RAIN WATER ON LAND IS
RETURNED TO THE ATMOSPHERE, RATHER THAN
RUNNING OFF
• 80-90% OF THIS IS PLANT TRANSPIRATION RATHER
THAN PHYSICAL EVAPORATION

19. RESTORE WETLANDS
• SWAMPS, BOGS, MARSHES, SALT MARSHES,
SEAGRASSES, & MANGROVES ARE MAJOR CARBON
SINKS, BUILDING SOILS THAT CAN BE NEARLY PURE
ORGANIC CARBON.
• WE ARE NOW RAPIDLY DESTROYING THEM BY
DRAINING, ADDING THE CARBON TO THE
ATMOSPHERE
• WE MUST REVERSE THIS COURSE

20. BEAVERS CONTROLLED NORTH AMERICAN HYDROLOGY
UNTIL HUNTERS DROVE THEM TO EXTINCTION, GREATLY
INCREASING SOIL EROSION & NUTRIENT LOSS

21. WATER & TEMPERATURE
• MORE THAN HALF OF SOLAR RADIATION ON LAND
EVAPORATES WATER, ABSORBING HUGE
AMOUNTS OF HEAT AND LOWERING LAND
TEMPERATURE
• ABOUT 60% OF WATER ON LAND IS RETURNED TO
THE ATMOSPHERE, RATHER THAN RUNNING OFF
• 80-90% OF THIS IS PLANT TRANSPIRATION RATHER
THAN PHYSICAL EVAPORATION

24. GOREAU & DE MELLO, 1985
AMAZON RAINFOREST
BRAZIL

25. GOREAU, 2014

26. RESTORING VEGETATION RESTORES
WATER CYCLES
• INCREASES TRANSPIRATION, CAUSING MORE RAIN
• REDUCES SURFACE WATER RUNOFF, SOIL EROSION,
AND RUNOFF
• INCREASES RECHARGE OF GROUNDWATER AND
AQUIFERS BECAUSE WATER FLOWS DOWN ROOTS
INTO THE GROUND
• RESTORES SPRINGS AND STREAMS