Nature and Biodiversity

Scientists in Sweden are studying the climate-cooling effects of spruce forests

Mountain guide Eduardo Zuniga holds fresh needles growing on a spruce tree, that has a claim to being the world's oldest tree at 9,550 years of age, on Fulufjallet plateau in southern Sweden, October 4, 2012. On a windswept Swedish mountain, a 10,000-year-old spruce with a claim to be the world's oldest tree is getting a new lease of life thanks to global warming, even as many plants are struggling. At a range of latitudes, but especially in the far north, climate change is bringing bigger than expected swings, putting billions of dollars at stake in a push to develop varieties with resilience to frost and heatwaves, drought or flood. To match Story  CLIMATE-PLANTS/ Picture taken October 4, 2012. REUTERS/Alister Doyle (SWEDEN - Tags: ENVIRONMENT AGRICULTURE FOOD BUSINESS) - GM1E8AJ1OM401

The little-known powers of spruce. Image: REUTERS/Alister Doyle

Johnny Wood
Writer, Forum Agenda

Scientists are exploring whether coniferous trees might help to counter the effects of global warming.

Deep in Sweden’s spruce forests researchers from Lund University are studying the cooling qualities of organic compounds called terpenes, which are abundant in conifer resin and also give spruce, fir and pine trees their distinctive scent.

When released into the atmosphere, these tiny particles interact with moisture to help form clouds that reflect sunlight away from the planet’s surface.

Cooling power

Forests cover nearly 70% of Sweden and play a unique role in influencing climate. Trees both absorb harmful carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and emit reactive gases that form secondary organic aerosol particles (SOAs). It is the abundance of these airborne particles that help sunlight-blocking clouds to form.

Commercially managed conifers, which are widespread in Nordic nations, produce a high concentration of SOAs compared to many other tree types. The Swedish research aims to improve scientists’ understanding of how these particles affect the climate, and whether planting more forests might have a cooling effect.

Adam Kristensson, one of the scientists conducting the study told Reuters: “It depends on where the forest is growing and what type of forest it is. In the southern parts of the world the trees are better at counteracting global warming than far up in the north.”

While this may sound like good news for people living in the Southern Hemisphere, it’s important to note that many countries have suffered devastating deforestation.

Image: Statista

For example, figures released by Brazil’s environment ministry show the highest rates of deforestation in the Amazon for a decade. Despite opposition from environmentalists, the South American country saw an estimated 7,900 square kilometres of rainforest destroyed between August 2017 and July 2018.

Have you read?

However, some of the forest lost during land clearance for agriculture, animal pasture and development is being replaced in other regions by commercial plantations that add tree canopy. Although a great deal of biodiversity disappears in the process, planting new trees helps to combat global warming.

Climate change poses one of the most serious threats to civilization. The World Economic Forum’s Global Risks Report 2019 ranks failure to mitigate climate change as the second greatest danger facing the world this year.

The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's (IPCC) Special Report on Global Warming sets a 12-year time frame in which the world must act on global warming to stay within the Paris Agreement’s target of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.

Time is running out to act on climate change, but studying Swedish spruce forests may shed more light on the role of trees in limiting global temperature rises.

Don't miss any update on this topic

Create a free account and access your personalized content collection with our latest publications and analyses.

Sign up for free

License and Republishing

World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.

Stay up to date:

Future of the Environment

Related topics:
Nature and BiodiversitySustainable DevelopmentClimate Action
Share:
The Big Picture
Explore and monitor how Future of the Environment is affecting economies, industries and global issues
A hand holding a looking glass by a lake
Crowdsource Innovation
Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale
World Economic Forum logo
Global Agenda

The Agenda Weekly

A weekly update of the most important issues driving the global agenda

Subscribe today

You can unsubscribe at any time using the link in our emails. For more details, review our privacy policy.

Our civilization’s survival depends on collective action

Gill Einhorn

December 5, 2024

Nature Positive: Cities’ Efforts to Advance the Transition – Durban

About us

Engage with us

  • Sign in
  • Partner with us
  • Become a member
  • Sign up for our press releases
  • Subscribe to our newsletters
  • Contact us

Quick links

Language editions

Privacy Policy & Terms of Service

Sitemap

© 2024 World Economic Forum