carbon sink

noun

plural carbon sinks

: a location (such as the ocean, the soil, or a forest) that stores substances which contain carbon and especially carbon dioxide

Advocates of "sequestration" argue that the ocean already functions as the world's largest carbon sink: it contains 50 times more carbon dioxide than the atmosphere, most of which is stored in sediments on the ocean floor.—

Linda Baker

Research has found that drought and declining water availability are increasingly impeding the ability of tropical ecosystems to soak up carbon dioxide, making the tropics a less effective carbon sink.—

Glenn Scherer

Peatlands serve as a major carbon sink. Their defining feature is a thick soil layer of leaf litter and other dead vegetation in a waterlogged state, meaning it can't fully decompose, which prevents vast amounts of carbon emissions.—

Isabel Esterman

Examples of carbon sink in a Sentence

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Zoom out: In a separate but related development last month, Planet Labs unveiled a new product that monitors forest carbon, tree height and tree cover to provide more precise measurements of forest carbon sinks. —

Andrew Freedman, Axios, 24 Oct. 2024 However, a rapidly warming climate may be prohibiting the carbon sinks on land from performing effectively. —

Devika Rao, theweek, 21 Oct. 2024 The land turns from a carbon sink into a carbon source, further unbalancing our planet’s carbon cycle. —

Erik Kobayashi-Solomon, Forbes, 20 Oct. 2024 The growth in warehouse development has raised concerns about poor air quality, increased cancer risk and the destruction of green areas that act as natural carbon sinks. —

Alex Wigglesworth, Los Angeles Times, 14 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for carbon sink