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Glossary of Terms

Carbon Sequestration
Carbon sequestration simply means the ability to remove carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere. Carbon sequestration thus reduces greenhouse gases and helps fight climate change and global warming.

Carbon sequestration can happen in a variety of ways, through both natural and artificial means. Certain parts of nature – trees, vegetation, soil, and oceans, for example - act as carbon sinks (also see carbon cycle). This means that as part of their natural processes, they remove carbon from the atmosphere.

By keeping these parts of nature intact and functional, humans can take advantage of natural carbon sequestration processes to fight climate change. Farmers can follow good land use practices (and earn carbon credits); the international community can fight deforestation; land use planners can avoid the worst consequences of urbanization, etc.

Carbon sequestration can happen through artificial means as well. The fossil fuel-based electrical generation industry is working on methods of carbon capture to reduce emissions from burning coal, for example. Another method is geological sequestration, or the process of injecting liquid CO2 into spent oil fields.
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Read up on the EPA's carbon sequestration in agriculture and forestry.
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The energy requirements of residential, commercial, and industrial buildings produce approximately 43 percent of U.S. carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.
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