The growing stock of European forests using remote sensing and forest inventory data

Summary This paper presents a methodology for producing broadleaf, coniferous and total growing stock maps for the Pan-European forest area. The approach is based on the combination of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration – Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (NOAAAVHRR) data and statistics derived from national forest inventories of European countries. Data were compiled at sub-national level for 14 countries comprising 224 regions and at the national level for 24 countries growing stock data where data were only available at the national level. The method demonstrates that calibrated forest cover proportion maps allow distributing regional forest coverrelated statistics proportionally to the forest cover represented within the NOAA-AVHRR pixels.