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Removal of greenhouse gases by UK forests

The number of indicators published as part of the Biodiversity Indicators suite will increase as new indicators are developed in response to the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, consequently the Biodiversity Indicators production team may not have the capacity to continue to update this indicator in the future. If you use the data published for this indicator and feel this decision would impact you, please get in touch.

Last updated: 2024

Latest data available: 2022

Introduction

Forests are a large store of carbon and also act as an active carbon ‘sink’, removing carbon dioxide (CO2), a greenhouse gas (GHG), from the atmosphere and storing it as carbon in living biomass, leaf litter and forest soil. This sequestration of CO2 is an essential ecosystem service.

This indicator shows the cumulative net removal of GHGs from the atmosphere by UK forests since 1990. It is split between type of woodland (conifer and broadleaf). Showing GHG removals by type of woodland is interesting from a biodiversity perspective as it allows a clearer presentation of the contribution made to GHG removals by broadleaf woodland, most of which constitutes a UK priority habitat.

Data for this indicator can be found in the published datafile. We also have a similar indicator at the England level.

Type of indicator

Benefit indicator

Type of official statistics

Official statistic

Contents

  1. Assessment of change
  2. Key results
    1. Figure 1: Cumulative net removals of greenhouse gases by UK forests, 1990 to 2022
    2. Figure 2: Annual net removals of greenhouse gases by UK forests, 1990 to 2022
  3. Further detail
    1. National Forest Inventory
    2. Figure 3: Total carbon stocks in living conifer and broadleaved woodland trees in the UK, 1990 to 2020
    3. Relevance
    4. International/domestic reporting
    5. Web links for further information
  4. Acknowledgements
  5. Development plan

Assessment of change

Cumulative net removals of greenhouse gases by UK forests.

Measure Assessment Time period Result
Cumulative net removals Long term 1990 to 2022 Improving
Cumulative net removals Short term 2017 to 2022 Improving

Notes on the indicator assessment

Long- and short-term assessments are based on a 3% rule of thumb. Where possible, the base years for these assessments use a three-year average. See Assessing indicators.

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Key results

It is estimated that from 1990 to 2022, forests in the UK have (cumulatively) removed the equivalent of 568.2 million tonnes of carbon dioxide (Mt CO2e) from the atmosphere (Figure 1).

Although the indicator is assessed as improving in both the long term and short term since cumulative GHG removals have continued to increase, annual rates of removal have remained relatively static over the last 20 years, with UK forests removing an estimated 17.6 Mt CO2e in 2022 (Figure 2).

The proportion of GHGs removed from the atmosphere by broadleaf woodland has fluctuated through the time series, but was greater in 2022 than when the time series began, accounting for 52% (9.2 Mt CO2e) of the estimated annual removals in 2022 compared to 44% (6 Mt CO2e) of removals in 1990 (Figure 2).

Figure 1: Cumulative net removals of greenhouse gases by UK forests, 1990 to 2022

Figure 1: Cumulative net removals of greenhouse gases by UK forests, 1990 to 2022

Source: Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) – Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) greenhouse gas inventory

Notes about Figure 1

  • Estimated cumulative net removals of GHGs (carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O)) from the atmosphere by forests in the UK, expressed as million tonnes of CO2 equivalent (Mt CO2e).
  • Revised in 2024 due to improvements in the CARBINE model and forest planting and harvesting statistics (see ‘Further detail’).
  • The results presented here are therefore not directly comparable with those in previous publications.

Figure 2: Annual net removals of greenhouse gases by UK forests, 1990 to 2022

Figure 2: Annual net removals of greenhouse gases by UK forests, 1990 to 2022

Source: Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) – Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) greenhouse gas inventory

Notes about Figure 2

  • Estimated annual net removals of GHGs (carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O)) from the atmosphere by forests in the UK, expressed as million tonnes of CO2 equivalent (Mt CO2e).
  • Revised in 2024 due to improvements in the CARBINE model and forest planting and harvesting statistics (see ‘Further detail’).
  • The results presented here are therefore not directly comparable with those in previous publications.

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Further detail

The data presented here are from the UK’s Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) GHG inventory, which provides estimates of the annual rate of emissions and removals of GHGs (carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O)) from the atmosphere by forests in the UK between 1990 and 2022 (Figures 1 and 2). LULUCF emissions and removals are given in terms of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e). The CO2e of a mixture of GHGs is the quantity of CO2 that would have the same global warming potential.

National Inventories of human-induced sources and sinks of GHGs are submitted by Parties, including the UK, to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) every year. This system was set up to meet the reporting obligations of the Convention and is used to report on progress in meeting Kyoto Protocol commitments. The Kyoto Protocol, which entered into force in 2005, obliges industrialised countries that have ratified the accord to reduce their emissions of six GHGs, the major contributors being CO2, CH4 and N2O. The LULUCF greenhouse gas inventory covers emissions and removals of these three GHGs resulting from direct human-induced land use, land-use change and forestry activities. The LULUCF estimates are compiled for the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) by the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH) and Forest Research.

The forestry figures in the 1990 to 2022 LULUCF inventory have been revised and therefore the figures presented here are not directly comparable to those in previous publications. Changes are due to improvements made to the Forest Research CARBINE model and a full explanation of the (most recent) changes can be found on page 413 of the National Inventory Report. Briefly, the reported overall net GHG sink in forest land in the UK (category 4A, see report) has increased by between 0.24 and 0.36 Mt CO2e (1.3 to 2.0%) across the time series compared to the previous inventory.

The changes either are or relate to:

  • A fix to the soil model to correct the percentage allocation of carbon incorporated into the soil to the resistant plant matter from 20% to 30%.

  • The inclusion of urban trees across the whole timeseries. This changes the assumed gross/net ratio (that is, the ratio between the stocked area and the total reported forest area).

  • The following minor activity data changes:

    • Northern Ireland wood production in private woodland being estimated for the first time.
    • Planting estimates amended for England in 2017 and for Wales in 2022.
    • Updates to woodland loss estimates for England in 2013 to 2022.
    • Revision of wood production statistics for Wales in 2017 to 2021.

The effect of these model changes at a UK level is an increase in both the broadleaf and conifer forest GHG sinks for all years between 1990 and 2021. More specifically, increases to the broadleaf sink were of a greater magnitude than those to the conifer sink between 1990 and 2011 and then increases to the conifer sink were of a greater magnitude than those to the broadleaf sink between 2012 and 2021.

Table 1 shows a comparison of the total estimated amount of CO2 removals by forests in the UK and in each of the four individual countries between 1990 and 2022. Forests in England were estimated to have removed a cumulative total of 269 Mt CO2e (47% of the total for the UK); forests in Scotland, an estimated 234.4 Mt CO2e (41% of the UK total); forests in Wales, an estimated 49.5 Mt CO2e (9% of the UK total); and forests in Northern Ireland, an estimated 15.3 Mt CO2e (3% of the UK total).

Table 1: Cumulative net removals of greenhouse gases by UK forests as at 31 December 2022 (Mt CO2e)

Country Broadleaf Conifer All species
England 189.1 79.9 269.0
Scotland 39.7 194.8 234.4
Wales 24.7 24.8 49.5
Northern Ireland 4.3 11.0 15.3
United Kingdom 257.8 310.4 568.2

Source: Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) – Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) greenhouse gas inventory

Notes about Table 1

  • Totals for ‘All species’ and the UK may not add due to rounding.

Table 2 shows a comparison of the total estimated amount of CO2 removals by forests in the UK and in each of the four individual countries in 2022. Forests in England were estimated to have removed an annual total of 8.4 Mt CO2e (48% of the total for the UK); forests in Scotland, an estimated 7.1 Mt CO2e (41% of the UK total); forests in Wales, an estimated 1.5 Mt CO2e (9% of the UK total); and forests in Northern Ireland, an estimated 0.5 Mt CO2e (3% of the UK total).

Table 2: Annual net removals of greenhouse gases by UK forests in 2022 (Mt CO2e)

Country Broadleaf Conifer All species
England 6.4 2.0 8.4
Scotland 1.7 5.4 7.1
Wales 1.0 0.5 1.5
Northern Ireland 0.1 0.4 0.5
United Kingdom 9.2 8.4 17.6

Source: Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) – Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) greenhouse gas inventory

Notes about Table 2

  • Totals for ‘All species’ and the UK may not add due to rounding.

National Forest Inventory

The estimated carbon stock of woodland trees in the UK can be used as a complementary measure of carbon storage. Information on current carbon stocks of forests in the UK were first gathered in 2014 using National Forest Inventory (NFI) data, based on a sample of woodlands equal to or greater than 0.5 hectares in size.

Fieldwork for NFI data on the carbon stock of all species of tree within forests in the UK is conducted every five years. The latest data is to 31 March 2020. At this point, there was estimated to be a total of 249.8 Mt of carbon (916.8 Mt CO2e) across all species of tree within forests in the UK (see Figure 3). Broadleaved trees, with an estimated carbon stock of 129.8 Mt (476.5 Mt CO2e), were responsible for a slightly greater proportion of the total UK carbon stock than conifer trees, which were estimated to have a total stock of 120 Mt (440.3 Mt CO2e). This difference reflects the fact that in the UK, the total ‘growing stock volume’ (as opposed to the total area) of broadleaved woodland covered by the NFI is slightly greater than that of conifer woodland.

Figure 3: Total carbon stocks in living conifer and broadleaved woodland trees in the UK, 1990 to 2020

Figure 3: Total carbon stocks in living conifer and broadleaved woodland trees in the UK, 1990 to 2020

Source: Forestry Commission – National Forest Inventory

Notes about Figure 3

  • Estimated total carbon in all living trees (including both above-ground and below-ground biomass) within woodlands of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland (in million tonnes, Mt).
  • The time series is non-linear.

Fieldwork for the current NFI began in 2009 and is conducted on a five-year cycle. The assessment of woodland carbon stocks from this inventory has formed a new baseline for carbon accounting within British forests and woodlands. Estimates of carbon stocks are determined by the total growing stock volume of woodland; this is a function of both woodland area and woodland characteristics (for example, number of trees, tree height and tree diameter) within this area.

Table 3 shows a comparison of the estimated amount of carbon in living woodland trees in the UK and in each of the four individual countries as at 31 March 2020. England was estimated to have a total of 125.3 Mt of carbon in living trees (50% of the total for the UK); Scotland, an estimated 96 Mt (38% of the UK total); Wales, an estimated 23.7 Mt (9% of the UK total); and Northern Ireland, an estimated 5 Mt (2% of the UK total).

Table 3: Total carbon stocks in coniferous and broadleaved woodland trees in the UK, by country, as at 31 March 2020 (Mt carbon)

Country Broadleaf Conifer All species
England 95.5 29.8 125.3
Scotland 20.9 75.0 96.0
Wales 13.0 10.7 23.7
Northern Ireland 0.5 4.5 5.0
United Kingdom 129.8 120.0 249.8

Source: Forestry Commission – National Forest Inventory

Notes about Table 3

  • Totals for ‘All species’ and the UK may not add due to rounding

The latest NFI fieldwork cycle began in 2020 and will run until 2025, after which point new data will be available and this indicator will be updated. The NFI assessment of woodland carbon stocks was used in the development of reporting on LULUCF emissions and removals. However, as there are differences in both the scope and the data sources used for LULUCF (sequestration) and NFI (stock) figures, they are not directly comparable. More information can be found in the Forest Research Report (PDF, 1.29Mb).

Relevance

The benefits that humans receive from the environment have become more widely recognised. The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment and the more recent UK National Ecosystem Assessment both highlighted that ecosystems and the services they deliver underpin our very existence. We depend on them to produce our food and timber, regulate water supplies and climate, and breakdown waste products. We also value them in less obvious ways: contact with nature gives pleasure, provides recreation and is known to have a positive impact on long-term health and happiness. Measuring the status of ecosystem services is therefore a critical aim of the indicator set. GHG removal is a regulating service that contributes to reducing the scale and future impacts of climate change (climate change mitigation).

International/domestic reporting

The UK Biodiversity Indicators have been reviewed in response to the latest goals and targets agreed under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). The indicators are being adapted, with some new indicators being developed, to better align them with the monitoring framework for the GBF. The suite of biodiversity indicators is therefore expected to change ready for forthcoming UK national reports to CBD in 2026 and 2029.

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Acknowledgements

Thank you to the many people who have contributed by providing data and to the many colleagues who have helped produce this indicator.

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Development plan

Since our previous publication we have adapted the language and visualisations used in this indicator. We are keen to hear from our users about these changes, as well as our published development plan, please email us.

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Categories:

UK Biodiversity Indicators 2024

Published: .

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