Following Global Forest Trends

‘We can’t foresee the future, but we can follow which way the wind blows and see how different actors in the forest sector act,’ says Karin Beland Lindahl.

Demography, energy and climate

Karin Beland Lindahl, together with Erik Westholm visiting professor at SLU, has interviewed a number of actors at the front edge of forest policy. They have identified three major global trends, demography, energy and climate. The Earth’s population is steadily increasing. Along with an improved economic situation, primarily in south-east Asia, more people experience higher standards of living, which raise the demand for forest raw material and energy.

‘At the same time there is a European energy transition in progress. According to the EC RES Directive, 20 per cent of each country’s energy consumption shall come from renewable energy sources by 2020. A substantial part of the energy will most likely be bio-energy from forest raw material’, says Karin Beland Lindahl.

With climate change the conditions for forestry and forest plantations are altered worldwide.

‘The single most important measure to take is to stop deforestation, which is responsible for over 10 per cent of the greenhouse gas emissions,’ says Karin Beland Lindahl.

Forest carbon politics

Future forest management in Sweden will to an even greater extent be affected by actors abroad. Sweden must relate to international commitments regarding for example climate, renewable energy and biodiversity.

‘In addition carbon politics will make its entry into forest policy. The forest has gained a new value as a carbon sink’, says Karin Beland Lindahl.

Land use around the globe will change and the competition for where we produce food, raw material and energy will increase.

‘The boundaries between the agricultural, energy and forestry sectors will become increasingly blurred,’ says Karin Beland Lindahl.