Production, consumption and trade-based forest land and resource footprints in the Nordic and Baltic countries

To mitigate the adverse effects of fossil fuels and non-renewable resources, countries have embraced the transition to the bioeconomy. As forest resources play a crucial role as domestic biotic resources and are traded globally, this study examines the forest resource production, consumption, and trade flows and their associated environmental impacts in six Nordic and Baltic countries using environmentally extended multi-regional input-output (MRIO) analyses. The study examines the forest land and resource footprints of the target countries. Forest land and forest resource footprints vary among the countries, revealing different aspects of forest use and trade in the bioeconomy. Recognising these variations is crucial for assessing the environmental sustainability of the bioeconomies of these countries. The paper highlights the potential for MRIO models to aid researchers and policymakers in decision making by considering consumption-based footprints to address bioeconomy-related environmental impacts. However, the study also identifies limitations in the coverage of forest environmental sustainability issues by forest resource and land footprints. Incorporating forest carbon footprints and using more disaggregated MRIO tables could enhance the assessment of sustainable forest resource use. Additionally, the concept of safe operation space may provide a benchmark for evaluating variations and changes in forest land use.