Forestation is either growing existing forests (
proforestation Proforestation is the practice of protecting existing natural forests to foster continuous growth, carbon accumulation, and structural complexity. It is recognized as an important forest based strategy for addressing the global crises in climate and ...
) or establishing
forest
A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...
growth on areas that either had forest or lacked it naturally. In the first case, the process is called
reforestation
Reforestation (occasionally, reafforestation) is the natural or intentional restocking of existing forests and woodlands (forestation) that have been depleted, usually through deforestation, but also after clearcutting.
Management
A debate ...
, or reafforestation while the second is called
afforestation
Afforestation is the establishment of a forest or stand of trees (forestation) in an area where there was no previous tree cover. Many government and non-governmental organizations directly engage in afforestation programs to create forests a ...
.
Massive
aforestation has been proposed as a method to
mitigate climate change, though its effectiveness is limited by the
albedo effect.
References
{{Forestry
Forestry