New research indicates that carbon offset programs are significantly underestimating the risk of forest loss from wildfires, drought, and pests. The study finds that current buffer pools, intended to cover carbon reversals, would need to be roughly six times larger to account for expected losses over the next century. This gap is most prominent in the U.S. West, where accelerating climate threats make nature-based solutions riskier. The University of Utah has released interactive mapping tools to help developers and policymakers identify more durable locations for forest conservation and management.
