Forest owners could generate significant income by keeping carbon-sequestering trees standing under the latest iterations of climate change legislation now moving through Congress. A recent article from E&E News (subscription required) says it now appears likely that private forests will play a key role in any legislation that gets passed:

The approved House bill establishes a cap-and-trade system that would allow coal-burning power plants and other large carbon dioxide (CO2) emitters to offset their emissions with "credits" purchased from forests, farms and other carbon sequestering entities. In the Senate, both the bill floated by John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) in September, and another introduced by Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) in November, provide incentives for forest owners to offset emissions.