Spontaneous forest regrowth in South-West Europe: consequences for nature’s contributions to people

Context European forests are expanding and becoming denser following the widespread abandonment of farmland and rural areas. Yet, little is known about the goods and services that spontaneous forest regrowth provide to people.

Aims We assessed the changes in nature’s contributions to people (NCP) from spontaneous forest regrowth, i.e. forest expansion and densification, in South-West Europe.

Methods We investigated 65 forest plots in four different landscapes with contrasting ecological and societal contexts. Two landscapes are located in rural areas undergoing human exodus and forest expansion and densification; the other two, in peri-urban areas with intense land use and forest densification but negligible expansion. For each forest plot, we estimated variables related to ten out of the 18 main NCP defined by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). Regulating and material NCP were addressed using variables measured in the fie...