Arctic Tundra Goes From Carbon Sink to Carbon Source for the First Time in Millennia: NOAA Report [Video]

According to the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)’s 2024 Arctic Report Card, tundra in the Arctic is becoming a net source of carbon dioxide, rather than the climate-beneficial carbon sink it has been for millennia.

This year was the second warmest in the Arctic, based on data dating back to 1900, the report said. Across the region, temperatures from October 2023 to September 2025 were 1.20 degrees Celsius above the average for 1991 to 2020, a press release from NOAA said.

“The Arctic continues to warm at a faster rate than the global average. The 2024 Arctic Report Card highlights record-breaking and near-record-breaking observations that demonstrate dramatic change, including Arctic tundra transformation from carbon sink to carbon source, declines of previously large inland caribou herds, and increasing winter precipitation,” NOAA said. “Adaptation is increasingly necessary and Indigenous Knowledge and community-led research programs are essential to understand and respond to rapid Arctic changes.”

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