Co-benefits from carbon sequestration in forests: Evaluating reductions in agricultural externalities from an afforestation policy in Wisconsin

Besides climate change mitigation, policies encouraging the conversion of agricultural land to forest may generate additional environmental benefits. We estimate the reductions in agricultural externalities (soil erosion, nitrogen, and atrazine pollution) from an afforestation program in Wisconsin. Existing benefits estimates are used to quantify the value of reduced soil erosion and some benefits from enhanced wildlife habitat. These values are the same order of magnitude as the costs of the carbon sequestration policy, indicating that the co-benefits of forest carbon sinks are an important factor for countries to consider in designing a portfolio of climate mitigation strategies.