Authors ; Executive summary ; Introduction ; Carbon cycles in forests and the forest sector ; Case study: Spain; Trends and issues; Forestry contribution to climate change mitigation ; Scenarios ; Results ; Key findings ; Case study: Czech Republic ; Trends and issues ; Forestry contribution to climate change mitigation ; Scenarios ; Results ; Key findings ; Case study: Republic of Ireland ; Trends and issues ; Forestry contribution to climate change mitigation ; Scenarios ; Results ; Key findings ; Conclusions and implications Forests and the forest sector play a significant role in climate change mitigation through the capture of CO2 in forests and wood products, as well as through material and energy substitution. An earlier EFI study (Nabuurs et al. 2015) found that forests and the forest sector’s role could be significantly strengthened through Climate-Smart Forestry (CSF). This is a targeted approach or strategy to increase the climate benefits from forests and the forest sector, in a way that creates synergies with other needs related to forests. The approach builds on three pillars:
• reducing and/or removing greenhouse gas emissions to mitigate climate change
• adapting forest management to build resilient forests
• active forest management aiming to sustainably increase productivity and provide all benefits that forests can provide. However, CSF measures can be regionally very different due to significantly varying regional circumstances
across Europe. This follow-up study to Nabuurs et al. (2015) demonstrates how a variety of concrete CSF measures would impact CO2 removals through forestry activities in three different regions in Europe. Simulation models were applied to conduct scenario analysis for Spain, the Czech Republic and the Republic of Ireland. Each region has different characteristics in their forests and forest sectors: Forests and the forest sector play a significant role in climate change mitigation. Within the European Union (EU), the current annual mitigation effect amounts to 569 Mt CO2/yr through capture of CO2 in forests and wood products, as well as through material and energy substitution. These net removals represent 13% of the total EU greenhouse gas emissions. A review study (Nabuurs et al. 2015) found that this role could be significantly strengthened through Climate-Smart Forestry (CSF). Based on a broad set of measures that consider the forest sector as a significant part of the solution to climate change, the study estimated that the 28 EU Member States could achieve an additional combined mitigation impact of 448 Mt CO2/yr by 2050.
