1 acre = 30 cars

I stole this graphic from the Nature Conservancy website (which I’ve linked here, so I hope they won’t mind).

We’ve been hearing about the carbon impact of chopping down all those 120-year old trees. Until now, I didn’t have an easy calculator, even as a rule of thumb, for what the impact would be. Thanks to the Nature Conservancy, we do now.

If you click on this graphic, it will take you to a Youtube video about trees sequestering carbon. That video is about a 100-year-old red oak. I imagine the story isn’t any different for a 120-year old eucalyptus.


So lets talk of the impact of chopping down most of the trees on 14 acres.

About 400 car-years? (Assuming some few trees are left standing.) And let’s not forget, bushes sequester carbon, too, especially if they are green year-round. The forests they talk about are less dense than the ones on Mt Sutro. This forest probably sequesters even more carbon.

And the whole forest? The 61 acres that UCSF owns are like keeping 1830 cars off the road for a year. If we include the 19-acre interior park belt, it’s like taking away 2400 cars.


2 Responses to 1 acre = 30 cars

  1. treelover says:

    I still don’t understand why NOW, when we supposedly have a window to stop global climate change from shortening the planet’s life drastically…why NOW, do people want to cut down these trees that are working hard for us? there is ZERO benefit except to people who will make money off the work.

    i hope they consider that they still breathe the same air and drink the same water as everyone else on the planet. we need to stop this cult from blind eco-terrorism.

  2. Pingback: Cutting Down Trees « Save Mount Sutro Forest

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