Humans have depleted global terrestrial carbon stocks by a quarter

The dataset accompanies the publication: Ganzenmüller et al., Humans have depleted global terrestrial carbon stocks by a quarter, One Earth (2025), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oneear.2025.101392Abstract:Mitigating global climate change requires massive greenhouse gas emission reductions and carbon removal efforts. Although terrestrial ecosystems store large amounts of carbon, land-use change has substantially diminished these stocks in many regions. However, a consistent, high-resolution approach to quantify the differences between actual and potential carbon stocks in vegetation and soils – the terrestrial carbon deficit – remains elusive, limiting the evaluation of global climate models. Here, we combine semi-empirical data with machine learning to estimate the terrestrial carbon deficit at 344 (251–393) PgC, equivalent to a 24% depletion, predominantly driven by pasture expansion (30%), cropland expansion (24%), and forest management (23%). We reveal that Dynamic Global Vegetation Models (DGVMs) underestimate the terrestrial carbon deficit by 37% on average (range: 2–58%), highlighting critical limitations. Our findings support assessments of anthropogenic impacts on ecosystems and help constrain global climate models to better evaluate nature-based solutions and climate mitigation policies.