Oxfam: planting forests is not enough to halt climate change

Without cuts to emissions, says Oxfam, the world would need 1.6 billion hectares of farmland to meet climate targets

Egrets are seen on mangrove trees during sunrise at Kajhu beach, Aceh province, Indonesia. AFP

Fire burns on the slopes of Table Mountain in Cape Town, South Africa. AP Photo

A fisherman on his pirogue throws a net in the Niger river in Mopti, Mali. Fishing is threatened by climate changes, unselective fishing and armed groups present in the rural zones in central Mali. AFP

World leaders virtually attend the Leaders Summit on Climate, as seen from the East Room of the White House. AP Photo

US President Joe Biden speaks to the virtual Leaders Summit on Climate, from the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC. AP Photo

US Vice President Kamala Harris speaks to the virtual Leaders Summit on Climate, from the East Room of the White House. AP Photo

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson speaks during the virtual Leaders Summit on Climate in a video screenshot. Bloomberg

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks during the virtual Leaders Summit on Climate in a video screenshot. Bloomberg

German Chancellor Angela Merkel attends a virtual international climate summit with US President Joe Biden in Berlin, Germany. AP

Chinese President Xi Jinping speaks during the virtual Leaders Summit on Climate. Bloomberg

French President Emmanuel Macron attends a Climate Summit video conference, at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France. EPA

Sheikh Hasina Wajed, Bangladesh's prime minister, right, speaks during the virtual Leaders Summit on Climate. Bloomberg

Yoshihide Suga, Japan's prime minister, speaks during the virtual Leaders Summit on Climate. Bloomberg

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen listens to US President Joe Biden during a virtual global climate summit, at The Prime Minister's Office in Copenhagen, Denmark. Reuters

Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro speaks during the virtual Leaders Summit on Climate. Bloomberg

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a virtual Leaders Summit on Climate from Moscow, Russia. EPA

Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, speaks during the virtual Leaders Summit on Climate. Bloomberg

US President Joe Biden speaks to the virtual Leaders Summit on Climate as Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry looks on. AP Photo

Justin Trudeau, Canada's prime minister, speaks during the virtual Leaders Summit on Climate. Bloomberg

President Joe Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, left, and Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry, right, listen during the virtual Leaders Summit on Climate. AP Photo

Resident Lourdes Martinez fills water tanks with water for her family daily use as Mexico City and the metropolitan area is running out of water as drought takes hold of the city of almost 22 million people in the municipality of Xochimilco in Mexico City, Mexico. Reuters

Smoke bellows from a power plant on a polluted day in Cangzhou, some 180 kms from Beijing, in northern China's Hebei province. AFP

A man collects garbage, including plastic waste, at the beach of Costa del Este, in Panama City. AFP

A polar bear stands on melting sea ice in Svalbard, Norway. AFP

Sheikh Mohamed Bin Rashid attends the Leaders Summit on Climate hosted remotely by US President Joe Biden.

Sheikh Mohamed Bin Rashid attends the Leaders Summit on Climate hosted remotely by US President Joe Biden.

Sheikh Mohamed Bin Rashid attends the Leaders Summit on Climate hosted remotely by US President Joe Biden.

Sheikh Mohamed Bin Rashid attends the Leaders Summit on Climate hosted remotely by US President Joe Biden.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in speaks during the virtual Leaders Summit on Climate, at the presidential Blue House in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, April 22, 2021. (Lee Jin-wook/Yonhap via AP)

Charles Michel attends a virtual Global Climate Summit via video link from the European Council building in Brussels, Thursday, April 22, 2021. (Johanna Geron, Pool via AP)

epa09152991 A screen shows Xie Zhenhua, China's Special Envoy for Climate Change, speaking during a media briefing on Chinese President Xi Jinping's attendance at virtual international Leaders Summit on Climate, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in Beijing, China, 22 April 2021. Around 40 international leaders attended the summit called by US President Biden. The meeting is intended to underline the urgency and economic benefits of stronger climate action on the road to the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow in November 2021. EPA/ROMAN PILIPEY

epa09152984 A handout photo made available by the Presidency of Brazil that shows President Jair Bolsonaro, along with the Minister of the Environment, Ricardo Salles (L), during the climate summit convened by the US President, Joe Biden, at the Planalto Palace in Brasilia, Brazil, 22 April 2021. Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro announced that his country will seek to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, ten years before the previous environmental commitment. Around 40 international leaders attended the summit called by US President Biden. The meeting is intended to underline the urgency and economic benefits of stronger climate action on the road to the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow in November 2021. EPA/MARCOS CORREA / BRAZIL PRESIDENCY / HANDOUT MANDATORY CREDIT: HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES

Pope Francis speaks during the virtual Leaders Summit on Climate in a video screenshot on Thursday, April 22, 2021. President Biden pledged to cut U.S. greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2030 as he convenes 40 world leaders in a virtual summit intended to demonstrate renewed American resolve to fight climate change and pressure wary nations to raise their own ambitions. Source: White House/Bloomberg

BERLIN, GERMANY - APRIL 22: German Chancellor Angela Merkel takes part in the virtual international climate summit with US President Joe Biden, on April 22, 2021 in Berlin, Germany. The meeting aims to underline the urgency and economic benefits of stronger climate action on the way to the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow in November. Around 40 top international politicians take part in the summit. (Photo by Kay Nietfeld - Pool/Getty Images)

Prime Minister Boris Johnson listens to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (on screen) during the opening session of the virtual global Leaders Summit on Climate, as he sits in the Downing Street Briefing Room in central London, Thursday April 22, 2021. The virtual event attended by many national leaders from their countries around the globe, to raise global ambition on climate change is taking place on Earth Day, and hosted by US President Joe Biden. (Justin Tallis/Pool via AP)

Using land alone to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 is almost impossible and would require all the farmland on Earth to be forested, according to an Oxfam report.

Governments and major corporations are increasingly planting trees and reforesting farmland to offset the damage done by greenhouse gases that have been emitted into the atmosphere by their day-to-day activities.

It is believed that a fifth of the world’s 2,000 largest publicly listed corporations now have net-zero goals that depend upon land-based carbon sinks.

However, Oxfam’s Tightening the Net report said some companies are hiding behind "unreliable, unproven and unrealistic" carbon removal schemes. These are failing to cut emissions quickly enough to avert a catastrophic climate breakdown, the report's authors said.

At least 1.6 billion hectares of new forests would be needed to achieve net neutrality, equivalent to five times the size of India or more than all the farmland on the planet, the report stated.

As a result, such schemes are also adding to food insecurity and could result in global food prices surging by 80 per cent by 2050.

Danny Sriskandarajah, Chief Executive of Oxfam GB, said: “Too many companies and governments are hiding behind the smokescreen of ‘net zero’ to continue dirty business-as-usual activities.

“Net-zero targets are vital to tackling climate change. Some governments and companies are taking bold action to cut carbon emissions but there are currently too few to give us a realistic chance of averting climate catastrophe and the widespread hunger and devastation that come with it."

Oxfam is calling for a greater focus on "deeply cutting" carbon emissions in the near term, starting at home and with operations and supply chains.

Carbon removal is not a substitute for cutting emissions and should be counted separately, the report said, adding that net-zero targets must be measurable and transparent.

“Land is a finite and precious resource that millions of small-scale farmers and Indigenous people depend upon to feed their families," Mr Sriskandarajah said. "Nature and land-based carbon removal schemes are an important part of the mix to lower emissions but more caution is needed to ensure good stewardship that doesn’t threaten food security.”

In November, Britain will host the Cop26 summit in Glasgow where global leaders will meet to ensure steps to keep global warming below 1.5°C.

Scientists and climate experts say the world is far short of that target. Oxfam's report warns the world should collectively be on track to reduce carbon emissions by 45 per cent by 2030 from 2010 levels, but only a one per cent reduction has been achieved.