Can reforestation cool the planet?

New study reveals potential

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COMPLETELY reforesting Earth might help cool the planet more than expected but still not enough to offset the warming that has occurred since industrial times, a recent analysis finds.

The scientists modeled what might happen if humans reached the planet's reforestation potential, adding about 4.6 million square miles of trees and bringing Earth's forests back to preindustrial levels.

The good news is that trees' natural emissions could help with cooling, the researchers write in the journal Communications Earth & Environment.