Towards climate resilient forests and forest management (LIFE CLIMATE FOREST)

The demand for forest ecosystem services and products is projected to increase in the future, driven by market demand and by EU and national policies on energy and climate. However, the condition of forests in Europe is moderate to poor. Climate change impacts will make forests even more vulnerable.The increased vulnerability and deterioration of forests can be reversed towards a higher resilience through enriched and varied forest ecosystems. This ensures sustained provision of ecosystem goods and services for future generations, notably carbon sequestration, biodiversity, wood production, and recreation.

In this context, the main objective of LIFE CLIMATE FOREST is to demonstrate a tree-oriented management approach for improving climate resilience of forest ecosystems on sandy soils, which are characteristic of Dutch forests. This improved resilience will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and enhance forest ecosystem services, including increased carbon sequestration, water retention, and recreational value.

The project's specific objectives are to:

• Demonstrate the effective implementation of a climate-adapted forest management approach for multiple local conditions;
• Involve the national forest management community in the development of climate-resilient forests throughout the Netherlands, with transnational spin-offs; and
• Demonstrate and build the business case for Continuous Cover Forestry, a well-proven approach in other EU Member States, in Dutch forests for improving climate resilience.

In LIFE Climate Forest several demonstration forests and reference forests have been selected to further develop, test and monitor the climate-smart forest management method as well as to show managers, owners, policymakers, and other stakeholders what opportunities there are when you manage a forest in a small-scale and tree-oriented way. The demonstration forests are located in the provinces Brabant, Overijssel, Drenthe, Gelderland and Limburg (The Netherlands).