The supply of forest-based CO2 removal

Forestation is viewed as a way to remove CO2 from the atmosphere and thereby reduce net CO2 emissions. But how much CO2 can be removed, where, and at what cost? Focusing on forested and forestable areas in South America, and using spatially disaggregated data, we estimate a supply curve for forest-based atmospheric CO2 removal. The supply curve traces out the marginal cost of removing a metric ton of CO2 as a function of total annual CO2 removal. Each point on the curve corresponds to a specific location where precipitation patterns can potentially support forest growth, and accounts for land opportunity, tree establishment and forest conservation costs. We find that over a billion tons of CO2 can be removed annually via forestation at a cost below $45 per ton, and about 2.5 billion tons can be removed at a cost below $90 per ton. The supply curve applies to South America, but with sufficient data could be extended to the entire world.