UPDATE: Forest Carbon Storage Trajectory Following our analysis two days ago on global forest carbon storage capacity, recent data from the Global Forest Watch indicates that tropical deforestation rates have accelerated 13% year-over-year, directly impacting the estimated 296 gigatons of carbon currently sequestered in standing forests. This trajectory underscores the critical window for policy intervention—forests are transitioning from carbon sinks to potential carbon sources in degraded regions, a shift that compounds climate projections significantly.