EU proposes quotas for states to boost natural carbon sinks

The European Commission on Wednesday proposed setting binding targets for European Union member states to use carbon reservoirs such as forests and grasslands to absorb a cumulative 310 million tonnes of CO2 a year from the atmosphere by 2030.

Experts see the protection and build-up of natural "carbon sinks" as crucial to reaching "net zero" emissions by 2050, the goal scientists say the world must meet to avoid the worst impacts of climate change.