Climate
Carbon stocks and pools
The five main carbon pools in forests are aboveground biomass, belowground biomass, deadwood, litter, and soil.
Changes in forest carbon stocks 1990-2020 (M tonnes per year)
Carbon pools forest in 2020 (% of all pools)
The role of forests for climate change mitigation
Forests play a vital role in regulating levels of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere. Forests accumulate and store large amounts of carbon in the trees and in the soil as they remove CO2 from the atmosphere but also emit greenhouse gases by harvest, decay, or disturbances.
Forests act as a carbon sink, when the uptake, or removal of carbon from the atmosphere, exceeds the amount of carbon released. Forests are considered sources when they emit more than they remove.
TOTAL EMISSIONS CO2-eq IN EU27 IN 2019
TOTAL EMISSIONS CO2-eq IN 2019
39.95 Mt CO2 equivalent emissions in 2019
TOTAL FOREST CARBON STOCK IN EU27 IN 2020
CARBON STORED IN FORESTS IN 2020
505 Mt C stored in forests in 2020.
CO2-eq FOREST SINK IN 2019
4.61 Mt CO2 equivalent sink in forests in 2019
LULUCF and emissions reporting
Countries annually report their emissions and removals in the national GHG inventories, including the LULUCF (Land Use, Land-Use Change and Forestry) sector.
Total greenhouse gas emissions 1990-2019 (M tonnes CO2-eq per year)
LULUCF greenhouse gas emissions (+) and removals (-) since 1990 (M tonnes CO2-eq per year)
Historically, the LULUCF sector is a net sink with decline over time. The LULUCF historical trend of EU27 is a net sink.
Emissions and removals of CO2-eq from forest land since 1990 in M tonnes CO2-eq per year
Forests take up around 12% of the total country emissions.
Harvested wood products
Harvested wood products provide benefits to mitigate climate change impacts. Wood products store carbon for a long time. The use of wood products may substitute the use of more fossil energy-intensive materials such as steel and concrete.
Emissions and removals of CO2-eq from harvested wood products since 1990 in M tonnes CO2-eq per year
Harvested wood products are a CO2 sink.
FISE - Forest Information System for Europe is a forest knowledge base in support of the EU Forest Strategy.
