Use of Forests and Wood Products to Mitigate Climate Change

Abstract

The increased concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere are one of the most severe current environmental problems. The annual atmospheric increase of carbon is estimated to be 3.2 Pg (IPCC 2001, p. 190). In comparison, the annual harvest of roundwood is about 3.5 billion cubic meters (FAO 2006) and contains approximately 0.8 Pg carbon in roundwood (assuming 0.23 Mg C/m3) and is, hence, significant also for the global carbon balance. The estimated amount of carbon in forested areas is approximately 650–1200 Pg (House et al. 2003; Grace 2004; FAO 2006), most of which is located in forest soils. Recent aboveground biomass estimates are between 257 Pg (Kauppi 2003) and 359 Pg (IPCC 2001). Given the large amounts, even a small proportional change is influential.