The Connecticut College Carbon-Offset Forest
Connecticut College sponsored a 37-acre forest to offset the CO2 emissions associated with the Crozier-Williams Student Center, better known as “Cro,” located on the college’s campus in New London, Connecticut. The forest was planted by Reforest the Tropics in November 1999 in the Las Delicias Farm in Costa Rica.
The key to long-term carbon storage in tropical forests is working with farmers to create profitable forests that combine low-cost CO2 sequestration for US emitters of CO2 with wood production for farmer income. Through forestry efforts such as the one sponsored by Connecticut College, Reforest The Tropics is developing and demonstrating a functioning model to offset developed country emissions in Costa Rica.
Many of Reforest the Tropics’ carbon-offset forests implement an innovative “layer cake” design-i.e., a stratified mixture of planted trees which combines fast growth, potential income, strong long-term carbon storage, and ancillary environmental benefits. The Connecticut College Carbon-Offset Forest is one such forest.

Connecticut College Carbon-Offset Forest; 7 yrs old at time the photo was taken in 2007. Today the tree is too large to encircle in a hug.

A photograph of the Connecticut College Forest in February 2009 showing a diversity of tree species.
You must be logged in to post a comment.