By now, you are most likely familiar with the benefits of drinking coffee to the human body. But now a new study in Toronto suggests that coffee can fuel more than humans; it can also potentially help restore forests.

Researchers tested a theory in Costa Rica, where the ground was covered in coffee pulp for two years. The results were more vegetation, denser tree trunks, and greater canopy height on the trees.

This project started on a former coffee farm located within southern Costa Rica in 2018. The region had gone through rapid deforestation, and a significant amount of rainforest in the area had been lost.

To test the theory that organic waste could help in forest restoration, the researchers took two adjacent plots of land. They covered one side with coffee pulp, given to them from a "nearby coffee processing cooperative." This thin layer of coffee pulp was no small feat, taking 30 dump truck loads to cover the entire plot of land.

The researchers took a census of the plant species and measured the soil quality and trunk diameters. After the two-year experimental period was over, they returned to measure and record the results.

The land covered in the coffee pulp had significant growth in herbaceous plants, providing a plant cover to the land nine times greater than on the untreated plot. There was also a high percentage of carbon and nitrogen on the land treated with coffee pulp, which showed an increase in soil quality, revitalizing the previously damaged soil. The density of stems and tree trunks on the treated land was 16 times more significant, and the number of trees was vastly greater. The results were visible; images provided by drones showed the tree coverage, and the coffee-treated land had a more lush environment.

The results were provided in the journal Ecological Solutions and Evidence and suggest that these techniques could help jumpstart forest restoration.

"While this single-site study points to promising outcomes for the use of an agricultural by-product to speed up forest recovery, well-replicated testing across multiple sites and over a longer period of time will be necessary to validate the restoration strategy," the researchers stated.

While there still needs to be more research on this topic, the prospects for coffee lovers are hopeful: repairing soils, strengthening forests, and doing our part. Maybe the coffee that we know so well for waking us up can be used to wake up our future forests. A bit of good news and another reason to drink SunriseCoffeeLA. Cheers!