CHEYENNE, Wyo. -- A new study estimates that western U.S. ecosystems -- from the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific Northwest rain forests and the Sonoran desert -- absorb and contain as much atmospheric carbon every year as the annual emissions of more than 83 million passenger cars.
That's the equivalent of nearly 5 percent of annual U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, helping to offset the pollution that contributes to climate change, the Interior Department said Thursday.
"This kind of groundbreaking science not only will help us be more effective stewards of our lands, but it also helps reveal how our forests, wetlands and rangelands in the West -- and throughout the nation -- are positively impacting the carbon cycle," Deputy Interior Secretary David J. Hayes said in a news release.
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