Oregon's tidal forests are carbon-storing powerhouses

The big picture: These ecosystems can store two to three times more below-ground carbon stocks in their soil compared with conifer forests.

• They include species like the twinberry honeysuckle shrub, crabapple trees and Sitka spruce, which are tolerant to periodic inundation by tides and brackish water conditions (when there's higher salt content compared with freshwater).

Yes, but: "We don't have a lot of them left," Chris Janousek, one of the OSU researchers on the project, told Axios. "Most of them have been logged out or converted to other land uses."

• Janousek said tidal forests have been understudied compared with other coastal ecosystems like marshes, mangroves and sea grass, so their role in carbon cycling and habitat support is just beginning to be recognized.

Zoom in: Examples of tidal swamps and forests can be found along the Columbia River and in Oregon's Yaquina Bay, Nehalem River and Coos Bay estuaries.

What's next: Securing funding to map the Pacific Northwest's remaining tidal forests is the next step, Janousek said.

• "We'd like to figure out where these forests grow optimally and where we can potentially restore them."