In a press conference held during the UN Climate Change Conference, Coosje Hoogendoorn, director-general of International Network for Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR) spoke about the carbon-capture qualities of the versatile plant. The press conference surrounded the release of a report by the agency, “Bamboo and Climate Change Mitigation”.

In the report, INBAR shows that bamboo can sequester carbon more quickly than similar fast-growing plant species. It reduces soil erosion by up to 75%, and is the fastest-growing plant in the world, growing at 1.2 metres per day.

“”One of the major ways bamboo can assist communities to cope with climate change is in low-cost, sustainable, climate-resistant housing,” she said. “Its strength and flexibility make it one of the best materials we have to withstand floods, storms and earthquakes,” stated Coosje.

The organization is working with its Latin America branch to grow and provide more bamboo in Latin America, where it can be used as a construction material for better and stronger low cost housing. INBAR is also working with Kenya and Uganda to replace tobacco farming with bamboo cultivation in those countries.

Click here to download the full report.

Tags: bamboo cultivation, bamboo global warming

No Comment