Tomas Lundmark SLU Sweden Active forest management and its role in climate change mitigation Potential Roles of Nordic Forestry in the Context of Climate Change Mitigation Tomas Lundmark SLU Sweden

The Scandinavian model 0.7 % 5 % 10 %

Broader insights on forest management in relation to carbon balance and bioeconomy The importance of management Potential to mitigate climate change Potential to contribute to bio-economy

Unmanaged Heterogeneous structure Old-growth Natural disturbances Lots of dead wood Natural regeneration Managed Even-aged stands Even age class distribution Rotations adapted to ”maximize” mean annual production Silviculture

Net Biome Production (NBP) Net gain or loss of carbon from a region. NBP is equal to the Net Ecosystem Production minus the carbon lost due to a disturbance (e.g., a forest fire or a forest harvest).

Forest Mitigation Strategies: Two competing positions Stop logging ….. … or use wood? Depends on you system perspective

Strategies to mitigate climate change … reduce emissions? Forest ecosystem “carbon stock” Bioenergy Fossil energy No difference of CO2 Hillevi Forest products Other products Consumption

Strategies to mitigate climate change …maximize carbon stock in the forests Forest ecosystem Bioenergy Fossil energy Forest products Other products Consumption

Strategies to mitigate climate change … or maximize forest growth to increase consumption of “CO2-neutral products”? Forest ecosystem Bioenergy Fossil energy Forest products Other products Consumption

Mitigation Options in the Forest Sector Increase stand-level carbon density Increase landscape-level carbon density Increase (or maintain) forest area Increase C stored in products, Reduce or avoid fossil emissions through product substitution and through bioenergy use A sustainably managed forest can contribute to the reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions to the atmosphere in several ways: through the carbon sink into the forest biomass and soil, the increasing storage of carbon in harvested wood products and the use of wood as a substitute for fossil fuels and energy-intensive materials. Wood biomass from sustainably managed forests has generally been considered to be “carbon neutral”, in that its use for bioenergy has zero net carbon emissions since the emissions released in its utilisation for energy are subsequently captured in forest re-growth [2]. This view has recently been challenged by stand-level lifecycle analyses suggesting that the use of wood for biofuels will result in a drawdown of the forest stock and thereby a net reduction in the carbon captured in forests [3–5]. In contrast, Poudel et al. [6] showed both short- and long-term carbon balance benefits due to silvicultural practices to increase forest growth on the landscape level. The opposing views on the climate change mitigation effects of forestry and the use of forest-based products seem to relate to the temporal and spatial system boundaries adopted in the different analyses.

The concept of climate change mitigation efficiency (CCME) CCME of 1 m3 wood (present use) 470 kg CO2 CCME of 1 m3 (more solid wood and bioenergy) >700 kg CO2

Long term climate benefit of present forest management and product use in Sweden Reduced or avoided emissions in Sweden in the range of 15-20 million ton CO2-eq per year Reduced or avoided emissions in other countries in the range of 45 million ton CO2-eq per year Global effect ≈ 60 million ton CO2-eq per year

Conclusions Design of climate change mitigation portfolios in the forest sector should account for changes in C in forest ecosystems, in harvested wood products, and for substitution benefits, relative to a base case. Climate change mitigation efficiency varies among silvicultural activities, product use strategies and by region, and no single strategy is best everywhere. Time perspective is crucial. A forest that is not growing more than today can not make further climate benefit.

Conclusions Forest growth and the use of forest products is more important than carbon storage in the forest in the long term if you do not believe in breakthroughs that solves the energy issue The “mitigation” effect can increase significantly in the Nordic and Baltic countries if measures are taken to increase sustainable harvest levels Forest management matters !!

Some final remarks increased forest growth = increased climate benefit increased forest growth means opportunities for increased sustainable yields increased sustainable yields mean increased opportunities for the bio-economy to develop there is much to be gained by a more active forestry forest owners to more actively than today contribute to climate change mitigation