Biomass and Carbon Budget of European Forests, 1971 to 1990

TLDR

Severe pollution in places like Montshegorsk, Russia, has caused widespread tree mortality. Pollutants act as fertilizers, temporarily outweighing their harmful effects. Measurements from Austria, Finland, France, Germany, Sweden, and Switzerland show a general increase in forest resources, with biomass building up in the 1970s and 1980s, suggesting that similar growth in other continents could explain a large part of the mismatch between atmospheric CO₂ sinks and sources.

Abstract

In severely polluted areas, such as locally in Montshegorsk in northwestern Russia, all trees have died. However, measurements from Austria, Finland, France, Germany, Sweden, and Switzerland show a general increase of forest resources. The fertilization effects of pollutants override the adverse effects at least for the time being. Biomass was built up in the 1970s and 1980s in European forests. If there has been similar development in other continents, biomass accumulation in nontropical forests can account for a large proportion of the estimated mismatch between sinks and sources of atmospheric carbon dioxide.