Forests are making a key contribution in tackling climate change. Yet, major knowledge gaps exist on how they can be preserved in the face of the climate crisis. A new research project will address these gaps by modeling the effects of different forest interventions on climate change mitigation, water, and biodiversity
PenInfo Desk: Forests play a vital role in mitigating the effects of climate change. Therefore, measures such as reforestation as well as the prevention of deforestation and forest degradation are receiving increasing attention from governments and businesses. Despite this, large knowledge gaps exist on how different forest measures affect the resilience of the plants, biodiversity, and hydrology in the context of the climate crisis.
This lack of knowledge has wide ranging effects: “There have been cases where forest measures have had unintended consequences such as lowering of the groundwater table”, says Anna Tengberg, Senior Advisor at Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI).
She explains that “currently we lack the quantitative data to really know which combinations of measures are needed to make forests resilient to climate change.” What is needed is to “develop scenarios of what the impacts of different measures would be.”
The project “Understanding and securing the resilience of forest-based climate change mitigation” will address these key knowledge gaps. The project will identify which forest mitigation measures should be implemented where in a basin or landscape.
The project will run simulations and search for forest measures that optimize mitigation, biodiversity, and hydrological benefits: “We want to make forest-based climate change mitigation more forward looking and integrated in its approach,” says Tengberg.
Peninfo/desk/01.11.24/12.26pm