Temperate forests currently cover about 600 MHa, about half of their p
otential. Almost all these forests have been directly impacted by huma
ns. The total living biomass in trees (including roots) was estimated
to contain 33.7 Gt C. The total C pool for the entire forest biome was
estimated as 98.8 Gt. The current net sink flux of biomass was calcul
ated at 205 Mt yr-1, with a similar amount removed in harvests for man
ufacture into various products. The major cause of this C sink is fore
st regrowth. Forest regrowth is possible because fossil fuels are the
major source of energy in temperate countries, instead of fuelwood. Fu
ture C in these forests will be greatly influenced by human activity.
Options to sequester more C include conservation of forest resources,
activities that increase forest productivity such as adopting rotation
ages to optimize C production, afforestation, improvement of wood uti
lization, and waste management.