5.4.5 Key future impacts on forestry
Forests cover almost 4 billion ha or 30% of land; 3.4 billion m3 of wood were removed in 2004 from this area, 60% as industrial roundwood (FAO, 2005b). Intensively managed forest plantations comprised only 4% of the forest area in 2005, but their area is rapidly increasing (2.5 million ha annually (FAO, 2005b)). In 2000, these forests supplied about 35% of global roundwood; this share is expected to increase to 44% by 2020 (FAO, 2000). This section focuses on commercial forestry, including regional, national and global timber supply and demand, and associated changes in land-use, accessibility for harvesting and overall economic impacts. The ecosystem services of forests are reviewed in Chapter 4, while interactions with climate are discussed in IPCC (2007b). Key regional impacts are further detailed in Chapter 10, Section 10.4.4; Chapter 11, Section 11.4.4; Chapter 12, Section 12.4.4; Chapter 13, Section 13.4.1; and Chapter 14, Section 14.4.4. Finally, bioenergy is discussed in IPCC (2007c).