Chinese bank ups loan support for forest carbon sink capacity

BEIJING -- China Development Bank, one of the country's primary policy banks, has stepped up its loan issuance to help promote carbon sink capacity in the forestry sector amid the country's push for green development.

Loans worth about 114.1 billion yuan ($17.95 billion) have been issued over the past five years, promoting key ecological areas such as the national reserve forest construction and forest quality improvements, the bank said.

It has supported the cultivation and maintenance of forests covering nearly 4 million hectares, which are expected to absorb 72 million tons of carbon per year after China reaches its planned carbon peak in 2030.

Carbon sinks, like forests and grasslands, absorb and store carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. China boasts the world's largest area of planted forests, and more than 60 percent of its forests are young or half-mature with high carbon sequestration rates and great potential for carbon sink expansion.