MAHA‘ULEPU — Capturing the carbon was a main objective of a recent tree planting project at Makauwahi Cave Reserve in Po‘ipu, according to John Latkiewicz, one of the organizers from the Kaua‘i Climate Action Coalition.
KCAC along with the Citizens Forester Program gathered a couple dozen volunteers to plant native saplings under the direction of MCR staff including Billie Dawson and Laura Manser.
“Carbon sequestration is the process of removing carbon dioxide — one of the leading greenhouse gases causing an unstable climate — from the atmosphere,” said Latkiewicz.
”Reducing our GHG by advocating for low-carbon energy sources such as solar, promoting transportation alternatives to single-ownership gas vehicles, supporting regenerative agriculture and other policies and practices is a goal of KCAC and other entities looking to stabilize the climate and have a livable planet,” he said.
”And no matter how much we reduce our emitting of GHG, we also need to eliminate what we have already accumulated, as it does remain in the atmosphere for centuries. Trees are the best way we currently know to sequester carbon. It is nature’s way.
“Trees are good at holding onto carbon for long periods, even after the tree stops growing or is turned into furniture or the like. Roughly 50% of the dry mass of a tree is carbon,” according to Latkiewicz.
The planting of native trees at MCR is part of MCR’s “coping with climate change” project. “MCR’s native reforestation project is based on plant fossil records discovered in the cave sinkhole, restoring abandoned farmland and defunct limestone quarry with the native forests that thrived here for millennia,” said MCR staff person Sequoya.
Tree planting is just one of KCAC’s projects. KCAC is part of a coalition offering educational forums the second Wednesday every month on a variety of topics having to do with the climate crisis. KCAC meets the third Monday of every month at 5 p.m. For more information, email kauaiclimate@gmail.com.
“Citizens Forester Program collects data for Kaua‘i’s tree inventory to inform our community and government leaders, so we can better manage, maintain, replace and plant more trees around the island,” said Sari Pastore, program coordinator.
”Currently, Kaua‘i’s Citizen Foresters are mapping trees in Lydgate Park and Lihu‘e and participating in tree plantings and education opportunities,” said Pastore. For more information, email spastore@smarttreespacific.org.
The next tree planting at MCR will be on Saturday, Aug. 20. Volunteers must register ahead of time, as access to MCR is regulated. For more information or to sign up, email dumpdoctor@gmail.com.
