A new study reveals that peatlands—a vital carbon store that many people have never heard of—are dangerously under-protected, putting the global climate at risk. Covering just 3% of Earth's surface, these terrestrial wetlands store 600 billion tons of carbon—more than all the world's forest biomass combined—yet only 17% of peatlands fall within a protected area.

In a nutshell Colorado’s 22.8 million acres of forests are now emitting more carbon than they absorb, primarily due to widespread tree mortality from bark beetles, disease, and wildfires. While these forests still store an enormous amount of carbon (equivalent to emissions from 1.

According to data reviewed and analyzed by Colorado State University researchers, Colorado's forest as a collective is now emitting more carbon into the atmosphere than it is absorbing.