A Review of the interrelations of terrestrial carbon sequestration and urban forests: Running title: Terrestrial carbon sequestration and urban forests

Rapid urbanization poses major challenges to the mankind with huge impact on the society and the economy. This paper aims to review relevant literature, mainly recent studies, focused on significant aspects of the interrelations of urban forests and terrestrial carbon sequestration, discussing their implications with reference to urban forests and their roles in climate mitigation, given that the real challenge lies in understanding the integration of carbon sequestration having huge pollution mitigating potentials with other mitigation options. Findings suggest that despite indications of studies that urban forests play significant mitigation roles; they have not been accorded adequate importance vis-a-vis management of ecological disturbances. Findings also suggest that urban forests significantly contribute to terrestrial carbon sequestration and these contributions are in addition to their multiple social-economic-cultural-aesthetic benefits. This paper underscoring the significant contributions of urban forests in maintaining ecological equilibrium, and managing balance between emissions and sequestration to ensure sustainability, offers usefulness to the future researchers, academics, urban-planners and policymakers. Keywords: carbon sequestration; climate change; urbanization; urban forests