Climate-Smart Forestry Case Study: Finland

Abstract

Finland is the most forested country in the EU – forests cover 74–86% of the land area, depending on the definition and source. Increasing carbon sequestration from the atmosphere, and by storing it in forests (trees and soil) will be one important part of the Finnish climate smart forestry strategy. However, just maximizing the carbon storage of forests may not be the best option in the long run, although it may provide the best climate-cooling benefits in the short term. This is because the increasing risks of large-scale natural disturbances may turn forests, at least partially, into carbon sources. The climate change adaptation and mitigation should therefore be considered simultaneously. Different adaptation and risk management actions will be needed in Finnish forests in the coming decades to increase forest resilience to multiple damage risks. This could be done, for example, by increasing the share of mixtures of conifers and broadleaves forests instead of monocultures. Yet, the CSF strategy should also include the production of wood-based products that act as long-term carbon storage and/or substitute for more GHG-emission-intensive materials and energy. Doing this in a way which also enhances biodiversity and sustainable provisioning of multiple ecosystem services, is a key. Moreover, increasing forest land – for example, by planting on abandoned or low-productivity agricultural land, especially on soils with a high peat content – would enhance climate change mitigation.