Recent global policy initiatives aimed at reducing forest degradation require practical definitions of degradation that are readily monitored. However, consistent approaches for monitoring forest degradation over the long term and at broad scales are lacking. We quantified the long‐term effects of intensive wood harvest on above‐ground carbon and biodiversity at fine resolutions (30 m2) and broad scales (New Brunswick, Canada; 72,908 km2). Model predictions for above‐ground biomass were highly correlated with independent data (r = 0.77). After accounting for carbon stored in wood products, net CO2 emissions from forests for the region from 1985 to 2020 were 141 CO2e Tg (4.02 TgCO2e year−1; 32% of all reported emissions). We found strong positive correlations between locations with declines in above‐ground carbon and habitats for old‐forest bird species, which have lost > 20% habitat over 35 years. High congruence between biodiversity and forest carbon offers potential for policy incentives to conserve both objectives simultaneously and slow rates of forest degradation. These methods could be used to track forest degradation for managed forest regions worldwide.

中文翻译：

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碳和生物多样性的长期持续下降是森林退化的标志


最近旨在减少森林退化的全球政策举措需要对退化进行实际定义，并易于监测。然而，缺乏长期和广泛监测森林退化的一致方法。我们以精细分辨率 （30 m2） 和大尺度（加拿大新不伦瑞克省;72,908 km2）量化了密集木材采伐对地上碳和生物多样性的长期影响。模型对地上生物量的预测与独立数据高度相关 （r = 0.77）。在考虑木制品中储存的碳后，该地区 1985 年至 2020 年森林的 CO2e 净排放量为 141 CO2e Tg（4.02 TgCO2e year-1;占所有报告排放量的 32%）。我们发现地上碳减少的位置与古老森林鸟类物种的栖息地之间存在很强的正相关关系，这些物种在 35 年中失去了 > 20% 的栖息地。生物多样性和森林碳之间的高度一致性为政策激励提供了潜力，以同时保护这两个目标并减缓森林退化的速度。这些方法可用于跟踪全球托管森林地区的森林退化情况。