Ancient Sequoias: Climate Change Warriors?

The Archangel Ancient Tree Archive is undertaking an ambitious project to clone giant sequoias, some of the oldest and largest trees on Earth, to help combat climate change. These massive trees, reaching nearly 100 meters tall and living for up to 3000 years, are being sampled by expert climbers. The collected genetic material is then taken to a laboratory to be cloned.

The goal is to create forests of these cloned trees, which are genetically identical to their ancient counterparts. Proponents, like Tim Smit, founder of the Eden Project, believe planting major trees globally is crucial for mitigating climate change impacts. Giant sequoias are particularly valued for their significant capacity to absorb greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide.

However, some experts express doubt about the efficacy of tree cloning as a rapid solution to the current pace of climate change. Professor Todd Dawson suggests that focusing on reducing fossil fuel use and protecting existing rainforests might be more effective. Despite these reservations, the Archangel team remains committed, with plans to plant thousands of sequoia and redwood saplings in Oregon and having already cloned 170 species globally.