Axeing the pine forests 'would slow global warming'

CUTTING down pine forests in snowy regions could theoretically help to reduce global warming, a study has shown.

Trees in icy parts of the world increase the Earth's absorption of sunlight by shading reflective snow, scientists claim.

This type of forest adds more to global warming than it takes away by removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

Clearing away the mighty pine forests of Canada and northern Europe could slow down climate change, the findings suggest.

But the US authors of the study are quick to point out that they do not advocate such a drastic strategy.

Dr Ken Caldeira, one of the researchers from the Carnegie Institution in Washington, said: "A primary reason we are trying to slow global warming is to protect nature. It just makes no sense to destroy natural ecosystems in the name of saving natural ecosystems."

The research, published in the online edition of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences,

simulated the effects of large-scale deforestation, taking account of the positive and negative effects on climate of tree cover at different latitudes.

It found that trees in snowy parts of the world actually warm the Earth

Tropical forests, on the other hand, had the opposite effect. They helped to keep the planet at an even temperature by removing large amounts of carbon, and generating reflective clouds.