Forests in the European Union (EU) are an essential pillar for biodiversity, the economy and climate change mitigation. However, they face significant challenges that require innovative and sustainable strategies.
Forest area and percentage cover
According to Eurostat’s 2020 estimates, Europe’s forest and wooded areas total around 180 million hectares. In percentage terms, this represents 45 per cent of the European Union’s territory (excluding lakes and large rivers) and approximately 5 per cent of the world’s forest area.
Among Europe’s 27 member states, the countries with the largest forest areas are Sweden, Finland, Spain, France, Italy and Germany – representing a total of around two thirds of the EU’s forests. Of these, Sweden stands out as Europe’s biggest “lung”, with 30.3 million hectares, followed by Spain (28 million hectares), which has invested heavily in reforestation over the last decade, and Finland (23.2 million hectares).
The EU-27’s forest area has been slowly increasing in recent decades. Between 1990 and 2020, the area covered by forests and other wooded land will have increased by 10.2 million hectares (an overall increase of +6.0 %). However, it has been recorded that the speed of forest growth has been decreasing (SoEF_2020).
In terms of percentage cover, only two EU countries, Sweden and Finland, have more than 75 per cent of their territory covered by forests. Outside Scandinavia, Slovenia has the highest percentage of forest area (63 per cent) and Greece, despite frequent fires, still maintains 50 per cent forest cover. At the other extreme, the forest area is just over 10 per cent in the Netherlands (11.0 per cent), Ireland (12.3 per cent) and Denmark (15.8 per cent) and only represents 1.7 per cent of Malta’s territory. Considering the different realities between the various countries, the average coverage percentage is around 38 per cent.
Despite the increase in forest area in recent decades, the percentage of forest cover has not followed the same trend and Brussels warns of accelerated loss of forest cover (SoEF_2020).
Forest property regime
According to Eurostat 2020data from , around 60.3 per cent of the EU’s forest is privately owned, while the remaining 39.7 per cent is publicly owned. Portugal stands out in this panorama with the highest percentage of private forest in the EU: 97 per cent of Portuguese forest is private. Only Denmark (76.3 per cent), Sweden (75.7 per cent), France (75 per cent) and the United Kingdom (71.6 per cent) come close to these figures. At the other extreme, Poland and Bulgaria have very low percentages of private forest ownership (20 per cent and 12.1 per cent respectively), which reflects different management models.
The economic contribution of forests
In terms of economic indicators, European forests as a whole generate an annual value of more than 164 billion euros and are responsible for more than 3.5 million jobs. They provide essential woody raw materials for various industries, but also non-woody products and a range of services, including eco-tourism, which are very important for the European economy (Eurostat 2020).
Main pressures on European forests
The 2016 report European Forest Ecosystems – State and Trends , published by the European Environment Agency (EEA), identifies several significant pressures that threaten the health and resilience of European forests. These pressures, which are often interconnected, jeopardise biodiversity, ecosystem services and the ability of forests to adapt to environmental changes. It should be noted that only 4 per cent of the EU’s forest area remains unchanged by human action and that most forests are semi-natural, i.e. shaped by human intervention.
1º. Climate change
The increased frequency and intensity of extreme weather events – such as droughts, heatwaves, storms and floods – has weakened trees, making them more susceptible to pests and diseases. At the same time, climate change affects forest fire regimes, leading to conditions that increase the extent and intensity of fires in the EU.
2º. Forest fires
Forest loss due to fires has increased in recent years. Fires more than doubled (an increase of approximately 210 per cent) between 2016 and 2018 compared to the average between 2004 and 2015. Several large fires affected several European countries in 2017 and 2018, both with record droughts and heatwaves.
3º. Invasive species
Non-native species, such as the Asian long-horned beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis) and the fungus that causes chestnut wilt (Cryphonectria parasitica), have caused significant damage to European forests. The widespread distribution of invasive species affects almost half the extent of forest ecosystems, raising concerns about the increased risk of species becoming invasive with climate change.
4º. Habitat fragmentation
Forest fragmentation, resulting from the construction of infrastructure such as roads and power lines, impacts ecological processes such as habitat provision, gene flow, pollination and wildlife dispersal. Fragmentation reduces the resilience of forests to pressures such as storms, decreases biodiversity and the adaptability of forest species to climate change.
5º. Pollution and nutrient enrichment
Despite the significant reduction in nitrogen deposition in many parts of Europe, this still poses a risk of eutrophication for many forest areas. Atmospheric pollution, including the deposition of nitrogen and other pollutants, continues to negatively affect forest health.
6º. Unsustainable forest management
Forest management practices such as clear-cutting, removal of dead trees and conversion to monocultures have significant impacts on forest habitats. Only 25% of the forest habitats protected by the Habitats Directive are in a favourable conservation status, indicating the need for more sustainable management practices.
Ways forward for sustainable forest management
Faced with these pressures that threaten European forests, the report European Forest Ecosystems – State and Trends emphasises the importance of management practices that balance the ecological, economic and social dimensions of European forests. Although the majority of forests in the EEA region are under some form of management, the report emphasises the need for more integrated and adaptive approaches to tackle emerging challenges:
- Ecosystem-based management (EBM): Management is proposed that takes into account all the functions of forest ecosystems, promoting the resilience and adaptive capacity of forests.
- Adaptive management: The need to integrate continuous research and monitoring to adjust management practices to environmental and social changes is emphasised.
- Compensation for ecosystem services: It is suggested that mechanisms be implemented to reward forest managers for providing services such as carbon sequestration, biodiversity conservation and protection of water resources.
- Strengthening research: There is a need to deepen understanding of the factors that affect forests, using the DPSIR model (Drivers, Pressures, State, Impacts, Responses) to guide effective policies.
- Multidisciplinary training: The importance of training professionals with a comprehensive understanding of the interactions between forests and human needs, rural development and climate change is emphasised.
According to the report’s analysis, the solution will be forest management that goes beyond traditional practices, incorporating integrated and adaptive approaches that guarantee the long-term health and productivity of European forests.
