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2.4 Carbon dioxide removal from the atmosphere
Carbon dioxide removal (CDR) in the land sector commonly occurs when atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) is sequestered via biological processes and stored temporarily in vegetation, soils or wood products. Industrial CDR options, including processes that permanently store CO 2 in geological formations, are emerging but are still largely in pilot phases. They also tend to be more costly compared to CDR options in the land sector . This briefing looks mainly at terrestrial CDR as covered by the Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) Regulation, in view of the available reporting data. The country profiles of Europe’s environment 2025 provide further information on national LULUCF trends.
Greenhouse gas emissions from land use, land use change and forestry in Europe
The land use, land use change and forestry (LULUCF) sector plays a key role in achieving the EU’s goal of net zero emissions by 2050. LULUCF activities removed net 198 million tonnes of CO 2 equivalent (MtCO 2 e) from the atmosphere in 2023, equal to 6% of the EU’s annual greenhouse gas emissions. Removals are estimated to have increased to 212MtCO 2 e in 2024. The LULUCF Regulation set an EU-level net removal target of 310MtCO 2 e by 2030. Based on Member States’ projections, the current implemented and planned measures will not suffice to meet the target, requiring renewed efforts and further policies to enhance Europe’s carbon sink.
Workshop - LULUCF: enhancing climate policy implementation
The event was organised by the European Commission, DG CLIMA, together with the European Environment Agency.