Extent and costs of forest-based climate change mitigation in Germany: accounting for substitution

Abstract

The objective of this study is to quantify the contribution of the German forestry to climate change mitigation and to calculate the associated costs at the national level. For that, the forest and harvested wood products carbon pools are considered as well as energy and material substitution. We compare five different scenarios, each referring to an alternative level of timber harvests (due to changing rotation lengths or setting aside of forest areas). The study shows that enhancing the use of wood products at the expense of other materials, such as steel, plastic or concrete, can have a substantial impact on the overall carbon balance.