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Widespread Unquantified Conversion of Old Boreal Forests to Plantations

Ahlström, Anders LU orcid ; Canadell, Josep G. and Metcalfe, Daniel B. LU (2022) In Earth's Future 10(11).
Abstract

Across the boreal biome, clear-cutting of old, previously non clear-cut forests with high naturalness followed by tree planting or seeding is a major land use change. However, how much previously uncut forest has been converted to plantations remains unquantified. We combine Swedish national databases on clear-cuts and forest inventories to show that at least 19% of all clear-cuts since 2003 have occurred in old forests that were most likely not previously cut and planted or seeded. Old forests have been cut and lost at a steady rate of ∼1.4% per year for the same period, and at this rate they will disappear by the 2070s. There is further evidence that this type of unreported forest conversion is occurring across much of the world's... (More)

Across the boreal biome, clear-cutting of old, previously non clear-cut forests with high naturalness followed by tree planting or seeding is a major land use change. However, how much previously uncut forest has been converted to plantations remains unquantified. We combine Swedish national databases on clear-cuts and forest inventories to show that at least 19% of all clear-cuts since 2003 have occurred in old forests that were most likely not previously cut and planted or seeded. Old forests have been cut and lost at a steady rate of ∼1.4% per year for the same period, and at this rate they will disappear by the 2070s. There is further evidence that this type of unreported forest conversion is occurring across much of the world's boreal forest.

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Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
boreal forests, harvest, land use, monitoring, natural forests, primary forests
in
Earth's Future
volume
10
issue
11
article number
e2022EF003221
publisher
John Wiley & Sons Inc.
external identifiers
  • scopus:85143227794
ISSN
2328-4277
DOI
10.1029/2022EF003221
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
84fe0606-a5d8-42c8-9028-1e04851f42d5
date added to LUP
2023-02-08 13:32:36
date last changed
2023-06-02 19:23:22
@article{84fe0606-a5d8-42c8-9028-1e04851f42d5,
  abstract     = {{<p>Across the boreal biome, clear-cutting of old, previously non clear-cut forests with high naturalness followed by tree planting or seeding is a major land use change. However, how much previously uncut forest has been converted to plantations remains unquantified. We combine Swedish national databases on clear-cuts and forest inventories to show that at least 19% of all clear-cuts since 2003 have occurred in old forests that were most likely not previously cut and planted or seeded. Old forests have been cut and lost at a steady rate of ∼1.4% per year for the same period, and at this rate they will disappear by the 2070s. There is further evidence that this type of unreported forest conversion is occurring across much of the world's boreal forest.</p>}},
  author       = {{Ahlström, Anders and Canadell, Josep G. and Metcalfe, Daniel B.}},
  issn         = {{2328-4277}},
  keywords     = {{boreal forests; harvest; land use; monitoring; natural forests; primary forests}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{11}},
  publisher    = {{John Wiley & Sons Inc.}},
  series       = {{Earth's Future}},
  title        = {{Widespread Unquantified Conversion of Old Boreal Forests to Plantations}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1029/2022EF003221}},
  doi          = {{10.1029/2022EF003221}},
  volume       = {{10}},
  year         = {{2022}},
}