Forests, Forestry and Climate Change

Abstract

Temperate and boreal forests represent substantial stocks of carbon as biomass and organic matter. Depending on the extent of climate change and the nature of future management practices, these forests may lose, retain or accumulate carbon in future decades. We review data on the impact of management on forest carbon, and we lay out some management options including longer rotations, lower disturbance, nitrogen fertilization and the afforestation of new land. We ask whether the carbon gains made possible by such practices will be at the expense of timber production and also we examine the impact of these practices on a range of environ- mental services (nature conservation, watershed protection, public amenity value, bio-fuel production). We look forward to a period of warming, which favours more rapid growth of trees in northern regions, but predictions from ecosystem models must be tempered by the likelihood that there may be more extremes, including droughts, storms and outbreaks of new pests and diseases. 1