Study uncovers widespread and ongoing clearcutting of Swedish old forests
發表日期：2022-11-09
作者：Lund University；翻譯：林詩軒；校稿：吳名翊
引用來源：https://phys.org/news/2022-11-uncovers-widespread-ongoing-clearcutting-swedish.html
『參考要點』：研究小組調查瑞典森林發現如果不阻止森林砍伐，古老原始森林可能會在2070年前消失，不只造成生物多樣性的消失、也造成森林退化。為了保護這些原始森林必須繪製原始森林地圖，並針對北方國家的森林制定復育策略。
『相關字彙』：deforestation（森林砍伐）、forest degradation（森林退化）、global north（全球北方）、biodiversity（生物多樣性）
圖說：(a)未砍伐的古老森林和(b)鄰近人工林的範例照片。照片源自瑞典南部的森林。
Example photographs of (a) an older uncut forest, and (b) an adjacent planted forest. The photos origin from southern Sweden
2003年至2019年間，瑞典最後一片未受保護的原始森林中，有將近四分之一被砍伐，按照這個速度，這些具有獨特生態價值的森林將在大約50年內消失。越來越多的研究發現，全球北方國家的森林逐漸退化。
Almost one fourth of Sweden's last unprotected old-growth forest was logged between 2003 and 2019. At this rate, all of these ecologically unique and valuable forests will be lost in about 50 years. These findings add to the growing body of evidence for widespread cryptic forest degradation across the global north.
瑞典森林的一小部分由從未被砍伐過的古老森林組成，這些稀有的生態系統擁有豐富的生物多樣性，讓我們得以觀察及瞭解在人類過度砍伐前的北國自然景觀。
A small fraction of Sweden's forests consists of older forests which have never previously been clear-cut. These rare ecosystems have a rich biodiversity and give us a valuable glimpse into the functioning of natural northern landscapes before widespread human interventions.
發表在《未來地球》雜誌上的一項新研究發現，在2003年至2019年期間，這種森林有近四分之一消失了，相當於每年損失1.4%。瑞典隆德大學副教授安德斯·阿爾斯特羅姆（Anders Ahlström）表示：「在所有北方國家中，土地利用的變化，都沒有好好地被記錄，多虧了豐富的數據，我們才能在瑞典調查這個問題並獲得如此清晰的結果。」
A new study published in the journal Earth's Future has uncovered evidence that almost a quarter of the few remaining forests of this type were lost between 2003 and 2019, equivalent to a loss of 1.4% per year. "This land use change is not well documented across all northern countries. Its thanks to a uniquely rich dataset we could investigate this issue for Sweden and get such clear results," says Anders Ahlström, Associate Professor at Lund University, Sweden.
在這項研究中，研究小組將瑞典國家森林調查9萬多座森林的數據與政府數據資料庫進行比對，該數據庫記錄了自2003年以來近100萬人砍伐森林的情況。
In the study, the research team paired Swedish national forest inventory data on forest age from more than 90,000 forest inventory plots with a government database documenting almost a million individual clear-cuts since 2003.
研究小姐發現其中有19%樹木在大規模砍伐開始前就存在，並且被砍伐過，後續也沒有重新種植或播種。儘管瑞典的森林屬於多產富饒，甚至有包含優先認證過具高生態價值森林的林產品，但仍然沒逃過被砍伐的命運。
They found that 19% of all clear-cuts had occurred in forests that are old enough to predate the onset of large scale clear-cutting, and therefore had most likely never been clear-cut with subsequent planting or seeding. This has occurred despite the fact that the majority of productive Swedish forest is included within some form of forest product certification that prioritizes conservation of forests with high ecological values.
瑞典隆德大學副教授安德斯·阿爾斯特羅姆提及，「按照目前的伐木速度，這些未受保護的古老森林中可能在2070年時消失。這種古老天然森林的消失將定義這幾個世紀以來的自然景觀，因為瑞典和其他北方國家森林的生長速度非常緩慢」。
"At the present rate of logging, the last of these unprotected, old-growth forests will disappear in Sweden in the 2070s. This loss of old natural forest will define our landscapes for centuries, because Swedish and other boreal forests grow so slowly," says Anders Ahlström.
這種損失對生物多樣性和對瑞典社會將造成難以計算的後果。
The consequences of this loss for biodiversity and Swedish society are difficult to calculate.
瑞典于默奧大學教授丹尼爾·梅特卡夫（Daniel Metcalfe）說：「由於這些古老森林面積相對較小且在廣闊的森林景觀中迅速消失，科學家研究逐漸消逝的森林系統機會正迅速喪失。」
"Given that these older forests are a relatively small and rapidly shrinking portion of the wider forest landscape, the opportunity to study these systems to understand what we are losing is rapidly disappearing," says Daniel Metcalfe, Professor at Umeå University, Sweden.
澳洲聯邦科學與工業研究組織（Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, CSIRO）全球碳計畫負責人約瑟普·卡納德爾（Pep Canadell）說：「由於人類對資源的需求永無止境，我們無法承受失去更多的古老林木，面對快速的氣候變遷，古老林木在保護生物多樣性和穩定地球方面發揮著關鍵作用」。
"We cannot afford to lose more of the world's old growth forests to humanity's insatiable appetite for resources. Old growth forests play a key role in biodiversity conservation and planetary stability in the face of rapid climate change," says Pep Canadell, Director for the Global Carbon Project CSIRO in Australia.
大部分北方國家普遍都砍伐古老的天然林木，但很少有人會去監測砍伐的分布和範圍，主要是因為沒有森林方位和範圍的官方地圖，在衛星圖像中也很難區分。
Clearcutting of older, natural forest appears to be widespread across most northern countries, but there has been little monitoring of the distribution and extent of this practice, mainly because there are no official maps of the location and extent of the forests and that natural boreal forest is difficult to distinguish in satellite images.
相比之下，熱帶地區中，大多數類型的土地利用轉型都可以被衛星準確探測到，因此有關熱帶森林砍伐和土地轉型速度和模式的數據，已成為評估這些國家環境進步的有效工具。
By comparison, most types of land use conversion in the tropics can be accurately detected by satellites, so data about the rate and patterns of tropical deforestation and land conversion have become an effective tool to evaluate environmental progress in those countries.
安德斯·阿爾斯特羅姆總結道：「亞馬遜和世界其他地區的森林砍伐和原始森林的消失引起了強烈批評，在瑞典和全球北方國家，我們的眼前也正在發生原始森林消失的事情。我們必須緊急繪製這些原始森林的地圖，並針對整個北方國家制定保育策略；否則這些獨特的生態系統將在我們能夠評估它們的氣候、生物多樣性和文化價值之前就消失殆盡」。
"Deforestation and loss of pristine forests in the Amazon and other parts of the world has provoked strong criticism, yet equivalent losses of old growth forests are also occurring before our eyes in Sweden and across the global north. We must urgently map these old growth forests across the boreal region and develop strategies to conserve them. Otherwise these unique ecosystems will vanish before we have even been able to assess their climate, biodiversity and cultural values," concludes Anders Ahlström.