JRC study on harvested forest area: resolving key misunderstandings

A recent study on harvested forest area in the EU (Ceccherini et al. 2020) reported a strong increase in clear-cut harvest area in recent years, based on remote sensing information. This triggered a heated debate and many critical comments. Apart from some fair and constructive criticisms, which were welcome, we found that several comments were either not based on evidence or affected by serious misunderstandings. Here we clarify key technical aspects that were systematically omitted or misrepresented in the public debate. Overall, the original study used in a scientifically correct way the best information available at that time. After the study was published, a previously undocumented inconsistency in the time series was found in the original dataset used. After corrections have been made, updated results confirm the increase at EU level, but reduce it from about 50% to about 30% (2016-2018 vs. 2011-2015). Contrary to what many critics say, this information should be seen as complementing and not necessarily contradicting country statistics, because the latter typically refer to total harvest (including thinning. etc.) and not clear-cut only. Finally, it should not be overlooked what the main aim of the original study was: offer a vision for integrating satellite data into the monitoring of forest resources. This was achieved: the JRC study showed like no other before the potential (and limitations) for high-resolution satellite maps to track the temporal evolution of clear-cut forest harvest in EU.

GRASSI Giacomo;  CESCATTI Alessandro;  CECCHERINI Guido; 

2022-03-14

SISEF-SOC ITALIANA SELVICOLTURA ECOL FORESTALE

JRC125228

1971-7458 (online),   

https://iforest.sisef.org/contents/?id=ifor0059-014,    https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/handle/JRC125228,   

10.3832/ifor0059-014 (online),