LEAST-COST FOREST CARBON RESERVES - COST-EFFECTIVE SUBSIDIES TO CONVERT MARGINAL AGRICULTURAL LAND TO FORESTS

Supply schedules for forests planted on marginal agricultural lands ar e used to simulate a national carbon sequestration program. A cost-eff ective program should focus on establishing softwood forests on pastur eland, and select lands by minimizing cost per ton sequestered. A prog ram similar to the Conservation Reserve Program would sequester 48.6 m illion tons of carbon per year (3.5 percent of U.S. emissions) on 22.2 million acres. Costs would include $3,700 million in land rental cost s and forest establishment costs. Minimizing cost per acre would incre ase enrollment to 23.1 million acres and would sequester 45.0 million tons per year.