Securing Europe’s Forest Carbon Sink: An Urgent Climate Imperative

Redacción HC
11/09/2025

Forests across Europe have long been described as the continent’s “green lungs,” quietly absorbing vast amounts of carbon dioxide (CO₂) and helping to mitigate climate change. Covering nearly 40% of the European Union’s land area, these ecosystems have historically acted as a net carbon sink, absorbing around 436 megatonnes of CO₂ equivalent annually between 1990 and 2022 — approximately 10% of EU anthropogenic emissions during that period.

But new research published in Nature (Migliavacca et al., 2025) reveals troubling signs: this critical sink is weakening. Driven by climate-induced disturbances, aging forests, and pressures from timber harvesting, the EU’s forest sink is approaching a tipping point that could undermine Europe’s climate ambitions.

This finding raises a pressing question: what must Europe do to secure its forest carbon sink and keep climate goals within reach?

Why Europe’s Forests Matter in the Climate Fight

For decades, forests have provided a natural buffer against rising emissions. They not only absorb CO₂ but also support biodiversity, regulate water cycles, and provide raw materials for Europe’s bioeconomy. Losing this function would mean higher net emissions, stronger climate feedbacks, and reduced resilience to extreme events.

“Forests are not just passive landscapes; they are active players in Europe’s climate policy,” the authors write. “Their capacity to act as carbon sinks cannot be taken for granted.” (Migliavacca et al., 2025)

What Is Driving the Decline?

According to the study, three main factors explain the weakening sink:

1. Climate-driven disturbances — Heatwaves, droughts, wildfires, and insect outbreaks are becoming more frequent and severe, leading to tree mortality and reduced growth.
2. Aging forest stands — Many of Europe’s forests have matured to a point where growth rates, and thus carbon uptake, have slowed.
3. Harvesting and land use pressures — Timber extraction, if not balanced with regeneration and conservation, reduces net sequestration.

Impacts are not evenly distributed. Southern and Eastern Europe are especially vulnerable to droughts and fires, while regions in the northwest, with active management, have shown more resilience.

How the Study Was Conducted

The research team, led by Mirco Migliavacca (European Commission’s Joint Research Centre), combined national forest inventories, satellite imagery, disturbance databases, and carbon cycle models. This comprehensive approach allowed them to track historical absorption, attribute causes of decline, and simulate future scenarios.

Key strengths include high-resolution satellite data and multi-decadal time series, while limitations remain around regional variability and uncertainties in projecting future climate-management interactions.

What Can Be Done?

The authors emphasize that there is no single silver bullet. Instead, securing the EU’s forest sink requires a portfolio of measures, including:

• Adaptive forest management to reduce fire risks and control pests.
• Diversification of species and age classes to build ecological resilience.
• Conservation of primary forests and restoration of degraded areas.
• Sustainable harvesting policies that align extraction rates with regrowth.
• Advanced monitoring systems combining ground and satellite data for near-real-time detection of losses.

“Delaying action will only make recovery costlier,” the authors warn.

Broader Implications

For the EU, maintaining a strong forest sink is central to meeting its Fit for 55 and European Green Deal targets. But the benefits extend far beyond carbon: resilient forests mean stronger biodiversity, fewer catastrophic fires, and a more sustainable bioeconomy.

Globally, the findings resonate with other regions facing similar pressures. Lessons from Europe — particularly around adaptive management, restoration, and monitoring — are highly relevant for Latin America’s Amazon and Andean forests, where climate change and deforestation threaten carbon sinks on an even larger scale.

Conclusion: A Call to Action

Europe’s forests remain a powerful ally in the climate fight, but their role as a carbon sink is no longer guaranteed. Policymakers, forest managers, and citizens must recognize the urgency of protecting and strengthening these ecosystems.

If Europe fails to secure its forest carbon sink, climate neutrality by 2050 becomes far harder to achieve. The time to act — through adaptive management, policy coherence, and investment in restoration — is now.

Call to action: Citizens, policymakers, and businesses alike should demand ambitious forest policies that ensure Europe’s “green lungs” continue to breathe for generations to come.