This indicator aims to monitor the amount of carbon dioxide equivalent (
Statistics for this indicator are derived from a model that combined ground measurements and satellite observations with national GHG inventory methods from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Gross removals (reported by convention as negative values) and gross emissions (reported as positive values) were estimated separately, and the net flux was calculated by subtracting gross emissions from gross removals. Emissions are estimated annually, while removals and net flux are averaged over 20 years.
Statistic | Data Set | Method |
Between 2001 and 2023, emissions from | Gross emissions, gross removals, and net forest GHG flux | Gross emissions, gross removals, and net forest GHG flux calculation |
Tropical forests had both the highest average annual gross emissions and gross removals of all climate domains, with average emissions of 5.7 Gt CO2e per year and average removals of -7.1 Gt CO2e per year. | Gross emissions, gross removals, and net forest GHG flux; ecozones | Gross emissions, gross removals, and net forest GHG flux calculation in ecozones |
As a result, tropical forests made up only 25 percent of the global net forest sink while temperate forests made up 40 percent of the global net forest sink, with an average annual net sink of -2.2 Gt CO2e per year. | Net forest GHG flux; ecozones | Net forest GHG flux calculation in ecozones |
In addition to having the largest total net sink, temperate forests also had the largest net sink per hectare, with an average net sink of -3.8 tonnes CO2e per hectare per year. Tropical forests had the smallest net sink per hectare, with an average net sink of -0.7 tonnes CO2e per hectare per year. | Net forest GHG flux; ecozones | Net forest GHG flux calculation in ecozones divided by tree cover extent in 2000. |
For Bolivia, Brazil, Indonesia and Malaysia, the majority of forest-related GHG emissions were associated with the clearing of forests for commodity production, reflecting a permanent loss of tree cover. | Gross emissions; countries; tree cover loss by dominant driver | Gross emissions calculation in countries and tree cover loss by dominant driver categories |
Meanwhile, the majority of forest-related emissions in China and the United States were associated with forestry operations within these countries, likely reflecting temporary losses of tree cover due to harvesting cycles. | Gross emissions; countries; tree cover loss by dominant driver | Gross emissions calculation in countries and tree cover loss by dominant driver categories |
While a substantial proportion of Canada and Russia's forest-related emissions were also associated with forestry, the majority were due to wildfire. | Gross emissions; countries; tree cover loss by dominant driver | Gross emissions calculation in countries and tree cover loss by dominant driver categories |
In Colombia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, most forest-related emissions were associated with | Gross emissions; countries; tree cover loss by dominant driver | Gross emissions calculation in countries and tree cover loss by dominant driver categories |
Brazil had the highest annual forest-related GHG emissions, releasing an average of 1.6 Gt CO2e per year, followed by Indonesia (0.96 Gt CO2e per year) and Canada (0.96 Gt CO2e per year). | Gross emissions; countries | Gross emissions calculation in countries |
Russia had the highest annual forest-related CO2 removals, averaging -2 Gt CO2e per year, followed by Brazil (-1.8 Gt CO2e per year) and the United States (-1.4 Gt CO2e per year). | Gross removals; countries | Gross removals calculation in countries |
Over 95 percent of the removals were from existing forests undisturbed since the year 2000, with the remainder from new forest growth since 2000. | Gross removals; tree cover loss; tree cover gain; forest extent | Gross removals calculation in pixels with no tree cover gain or loss over model period |
... among countries whose forests were a net source, Indonesia had the highest net emissions from forests (0.35 Gt CO2e per year), followed by Malaysia (0.13 Gt CO2e per year) and Laos (0.06 Gt CO2e per year). | Net forest GHG flux; countries | Net forest GHG flux calculation in countries |
Among countries whose forests were a net sink, Russia had the highest net removals from forests (-1.4 Gt CO2e per year), followed by the United States (-0.63 Gt CO2e per year) and China (-0.49 Gt CO2e year). | Net forest GHG flux; countries | Net forest GHG flux calculation in countries |
Globally, gross annual GHG emissions where the dominant | Gross emissions; tree cover loss by dominant driver | Gross emissions calculation in tree cover loss by dominant driver categories |
Brazil and Indonesia accounted for 74 percent of gross annual GHG emissions from commodity-driven deforestation, followed by Malaysia (7 percent), Bolivia (4 percent) and Paraguay (2 percent). | Gross emissions; tree cover loss by dominant driver; countries | Gross emissions calculation in commodity-driven deforestation category and countries |
Landscapes dominated by forestry removed more carbon due to forest management and regrowth than they emitted due to harvesting, providing an average annual net sink of -2.6 Gt CO2e per year (gross emissions of 2.7 Gt CO2e per year and gross removals of -5.4 Gt CO2e per year). | Gross emissions, gross removals, and net forest GHG flux; tree cover loss by dominant driver | Gross emissions, gross removals, and net forest GHG flux calculation in tree cover loss by dominant driver categories |
Similarly, forests in shifting agriculture landscapes removed more carbon than they emitted, providing an average annual net sink of -1.1 Gt CO2e per year (gross emissions of 2.5 Gt CO2e per year and gross removals of -3.6 Gt CO2e per year) | Gross emissions, gross removals, and net forest GHG flux; tree cover loss by dominant driver | Gross emissions, gross removals, and net forest GHG flux calculation in tree cover loss by dominant driver categories |
Globally, wildfires emitted an average of 1.7 Gt CO2e per year between 2001 and 2023. Of this, CO2 accounted for approximately 88 percent of emissions, while CH4 and N2O accounted for approximately 12 percent. | Gross emissions; MODIS burned area | Gross emissions calculation in MODIS burned area |
The impact of these fires on GHG emissions is evident: forest-related GHG emissions associated with wildfire in Australia increased nearly twentyfold in 2019-2020 compared to the annual average from 2001-2018, increasing from an average of 0.02 Gt CO2e per year to an average of 0.33 Gt CO2e per year | Gross emissions; tree cover loss due to fires; countries | Gross emissions calculation in tree cover loss due to fires within Australia |
Forests in protected areas had an average annual net sink of -1.7 Gt CO2e per year, accounting for approximately 31 percent of the average annual global net sink from forests. | Net forest GHG flux; protected areas | Net forest GHG flux calculation in protected areas |
Forests in Indigenous and community lands for which spatial data is available had an average annual net sink of -0.52 Gt CO2e per year, accounting for 10 percent of the average annual global net sink from forests. | Net forest GHG flux; LandMark | Net forest GHG flux calculation in LandMark |
Combined, protected areas and Indigenous lands had an average annual net sink of -1.9 Gt CO2e per year — equivalent to the forest net sink of China and Russia — accounting for 36 percent of the average annual global net sink from forests. | Net forest GHG flux; protected areas; LandMark; countries | Net forest GHG flux calculation in protected areas; net forest GHG flux calculation in LandMark; net forest GHG flux calculation in countries |