Forests and Climate Change: A Critical Call for Action

The stress exerted by climate change on ecosystems globally is putting Europe’s forest at risk at an unprecedented level. These future studies imply that new approaches to reforest the area will be necessary to save these keystone habitats.

The Tree Species Bottleneck

Detail from last author study published in Nature Ecology & Evolution: Trees that are likely only to survive the rapid climate changes projected for the next 100 years are mostly found in America. The research showed, however, that only three of those nine tree species, on average, can adapt enough to maintain critical ecosystem functions, such as carbon sequestration and providing habitat for wildlife. The increasing danger for Europe’s forests [17], on the other hand, results in an urgency to establish both climate change mitigation and reforestation measures.

Re-wilding Projects in Romania

Rewilding projects have emerged as one such climate impact mitigation potential. Take, for instance, the rewilding of the Čšarcu mountains in Romania, where the reintroduction of grazing European Bison is helping to bring back lost habitats and promote carbon sequestration. This herd of bison could help capture and store as much carbon as the emissions of 84,000 extra US petrol cars each year. These processes echo the transformative potential of rewilding, illustrating its feasibility as a form of ecological restoration and radical climate action [20].

Environmental free free public transport

This experiment conducted to free urban public transport in Montpellier is a positive example of the type of progress that can be achieved in urban areas. The city has seen public transport use increase by 20%, with numbers growing continuously as the city entrenches its free bus and tram service, freeing up the road for cyclists and pedestrians, and reducing that all-important carbon consumption. This precedent exists in Europe and may encourage other cities on the continent to follow suit, helping to advance wider climate change goals [20].

Festering jungles – biodiversity hotspots that time forgot.

A separate study underscored the promise of Europe’s “ignored forests,” which have remained largely out of the public eye but which are key if forests are to bounce back. These forests could be the region’s biodiversity hotspots (1) and are likely to contribute significantly to the ecological resilience of the bolt region. It is probable that the development of these areas would open the house to fresh genes, and that preserving them might be key to prevent the loss of biodiversity, and in the future, this could be essential for brewing the natural landscape for climate change [21].

This is a summary of the multi-faceted strategy to ecological sustainability.

Though climate change will likely continue to increase the prevalence of extreme natural events, the continuous ecological efforts throughout Europe show the necessity for complementary approaches to dampen or even reverse the trend. Europe offers an experimental approximation of strategies for ecological sustainability, varying from targeted reforestation and rewilding to urban-based initiatives for lowering carbon footprints. The key to these endeavours is continuing innovation, evidence-informed research, and evidence-informed policy.

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