Carbon Sequestration

Even after the implementation of the greenhouse gas reduction strategies in the County’s 2020 Government Operations Climate Action Plan’s (GOCAP), 14 percent of emissions will need to be mitigated through carbon sequestration practices in order to reach carbon neutrality.

San Mateo County Parklands include over 14,600 acres of land, owned, and managed by the County. In that space is a total of 2,278,259 MT carbon dioxide equivalent stored in above and below ground vegetation and soils. This is equivalent to the amount of carbon dioxide from 256,358,614 gallons of gasoline consumed, or from powering 297,107 homes for a year.

The County is assessing what actions can be taken, and at what scale, to maintain carbon stocks by preventing losses from wildfire. It is also exploring ways to increase carbon storage through climate-smart practices like compost application and restoration activities.

The strategies and measures outlined in the Community Climate Action Plan (CCAP), adopted by the Board of Supervisors in 2022, are designed to support local agricultural producers and enable carbon farming on the County’s working lands. In the Working Lands component of the CCAP, Sustainability Department staff, in partnership with the Carbon Cycle Institute and the San Mateo Resource Conservation District, and with grant funding from the California Department of Conservation, assessed the potential for working lands in San Mateo County to sequester carbon, and the extent to which these lands and local producers can accelerate emissions reductions and help reach the County’s climate goals.