Carbon emissions and removals from forests: new estimates, 1990-2020

National, regional and global CO2 emissions and removals from forests were estimated for the period 1990-2020 using as input the country reports of the Global Forest Resources Assessment 2020. The new Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) estimates, based on a simple carbon stock change approach, update published information on net emissions and removals from forests in relation to (a) net forest conversion and (b) forest land. Results show a significant reduction in global emissions from net forest conversion over the study period, from a mean of 4.3 in 1991-2000 to 2.9 GtCO(2) yr(-1) in 2016-2020. At the same time, forest land was a significant carbon sink globally but decreased in strength over the study period, from -3.5 to -2.6 GtCO(2) yr(-1). Combining net forest conversion with forest land, our estimates indicated that globally forests were a small net source of CO2 to the atmosphere on average during 1990-2020, with mean net emissions of 0.4 GtCO(2) yr(-1). The exception was the brief period 2011-2015, when forest land removals counterbalanced emissions from net forest conversion, resulting in a global net sink of -0.7 GtCO(2) yr(-1). Importantly, the new estimates allow for the first time in the literature the characterization of forest emissions and removals for the decade just concluded, 2011-2020, showing that in this period the net contribution of forests to the atmosphere was very small, i.e., a sink of less than -0.2 GtCO(2) yr(-1) - an estimate not yet reported in the literature. This near-zero balance was nonetheless the result of large global fluxes of opposite sign, namely net forest conversion emissions of 3.1 GtCO(2) yr(-1) counterbalanced by net removals on forest land of -3.3 GtCO(2) yr(-1). Finally, we compared our estimates with data independently reported by countries to the United Nations Framework on Climate Change, indicating close agreement between FAO and country emissions and removals estimates. Data from this study are openly available via the Zenodo portal (Tubiello, 2020), with DOI https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3941973, as well as in the FAOSTAT (Food and Agriculture Organization Corporate Statistical Database) emissions database (FAO, 2021a).

Automated summary

CO2 emissions and removals from forests at national, regional and global levels were estimated for the period 1990-2020. The results show a reduction in global emissions from net forest conversion, while forest land remains a significant carbon sink. During the brief period of 2011-2015, there was a global net absorption, and from 2011-2020, the net contribution of forests to the atmosphere was very small, close to zero.