Forest carbon sink at lowest level in more than 20 years due to fires and deforestation (WRI/study)

"The global forest carbon sink dropped to its lowest level in 2023 in more than 20 years, driven by intense wildfires and ongoing deforestation", observes the Global Forest Watch (GFW) of the World Resources Institute and Land & Carbon Lab, on 24/07/2025.

Key highlights of their findings show that:

• In tropical regions, fires overtook deforestation as the leading cause of carbon loss for the first time in the dataset’s history.
• Forests globally are now absorbing significantly less carbon compared to two decades ago - a decline tied to accelerating disturbances and land-use changes.
• While deforestation remained a key contributor, wildfires emerged as the dominant factor in tropical primary forest loss, marking a structural shift in sink dynamics.

"Forests have historically acted as a reliable planetary thermostat. In a typical year, forests and other vegetation absorb roughly 30% of the carbon that humans emit from burning fossil fuels. But extreme fires caused forests to absorb far less carbon than usual in 2023 and 2024, weakening their cooling effect. During those years, forests…