Planting trees in Italy for the health of the planet. Where, how and why

The Laudato Si’ communities have put forward the proposal to plant 60 million trees in Italy to fight the climate crisis. The role of forests in mitigating climate change is scientifically unequivocal. However, a sound reforestation strategy must be consistent with the country’s environmental, forest and socio-economic context. Italian forests and the 12 billion trees they contain currently absorb 5-10% of the total country emissions; 60 million trees would result in an additional sequestration of 0.05% of the CO2 emitted annually. Furthermore, forested areas in Italy are rapidly increasing on rural and marginal sites. On the contrary, forests are disappearing in lowlands and urban centers. Cities and suburbs are the areas where new forests could play an important role in climate mitigation, contributing to the mitigation of heat waves and air pollution, and increasing the well-being of citizens. To be successful, interventions to mitigate the climate crisis cannot be exhausted within the forest sector. Forestry-related strategies must be diversified, and include reducing deforestation, planting new forests, increasing the efficacy of sustainable and adaptive forest management, and taking advantage of the substitution effects played by wood-based materials. New urban forests, if subject to scientifically based design and planning, are an important part of this strategy.