Urban forests can support municipal climate action while delivering a broad range of additional ecosystem services. This study assesses the city of Sárvár, Hungary (1,125 ha of forests and 470 ha of other tree-covered areas) to quantify carbon-related ecosystem services and monetize selected non-market benefits. Carbon stocks and sequestration were estimated by tree species group using National Forestry Database records (2010–2023), Copernicus Tree Cover Density data, and IPCC greenhouse-gas inventory methodology. Harvested wood products and material- and energy-substitution effects were also included. Urban forests and trees stored 366,667 tons of CO2 in 2023, corresponding to a carbon-stock value of EUR 18.8 million. When biomass dynamics, harvested wood products, and substitution effects were considered jointly, the net mitigation effect offset 9.3% of total municipal greenhouse-gas emissions. Using a benefit-transfer approach and a 2% social discount rate, the capitalized value of biodiversity-related ecosystem services amounted to EUR 11.89 million, while the capitalized recreational value reached EUR 5.95 million. Overall, the findings suggest that Sárvár’s urban forests operate as multifunctional natural capital assets providing climate mitigation and welfare benefits that are directly relevant to policy design, evidence-based urban planning, and ecosystem accounting.
Phenology is a key bioindicator of climate change; however, the genetic and environmental drivers of phenological traits still remain poorly understood. The authors analyzed large-scale patterns of bud burst and bud set (i.e. of vegetation period length) in Eastern European Scots pine provenances to assess the influence of climatic factors and the role of inheritance in phenological adaptation. Phenological traits were correlated with climatic variables and modelled with linear transfer regression analyses using historical data from provenance experiments in Hungary. The results demonstrate that phenological traits of Scots pine populations exhibit a genetically determined clinal variation pattern and strong correlations between bud burst, bud set and temperature-related variables. The findings challenge opinions that emphasize plasticity in spring phenology and photoperiodic control of autumn growth cessation. The hypothesis of rapid plastic adaptation to changing climatic conditions is not supported by our results. The patterns of phenotypic diversity require a critical consideration in adaptive forest management strategies.
This study examines the economic performance of an agroforestry system applied in Africa and complementary insights into its social and ecological implications, focusing on the intercropping of macadamia (Macadamia integrifolia) and Arabica coffee (Coffea arabica). The research was conducted on a 1.6-hectare area at Pamo Mangala Farm in Zambia between 2021 and 2024. During the study, we assessed and compared the effects of different planting systems on farm productivity, including homogeneous and heterogeneous layouts. The results show that intercropping can increase farm profitability through production diversification while supporting sustainable farming practices; it may also have positive effects on local employment and environmental conditions.
Improved Forest Management (IFM) is expected to become a key component of the EU’s Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF), yet baseline setting, additionality assessment, and carbon-removal quantification remain methodologically challenging. This study presents a demonstrative IFM case using a 4.7-hectare Scots pine–hornbeam stand in Western Hungary, combining extended rotation with climate-adaptive regeneration. A hypothetical baseline was derived from National Forestry Database data, while carbon sequestration was modelled using the Forest Industry Carbon Model with a 15% uncertainty correction. Project-related emissions were quantified under the IPCC guidelines. Over 2024–2055, total biomass carbon increased by 99 tC, with regeneration contributing an additional 44 tC. After deducting baseline sequestration and minor implementation emissions (<1% of total removals), the project generates 201 eligible carbon credits, equivalent to 10,074 EUR (7,255 EUR at present value). The case study illustrates how CRCF-aligned IFM assessments can be conducted in practice, stressing the importance of baseline definitions, the strong net-positive carbon balance of IFM measures, and the potential economic viability of such projects under forthcoming EU carbon removal standards.
Vegetation belts may offer an effective and economical solution for reducing noise pollution as an environmental impact where sufficiently large areas are available. However, the complexity of the attenuation process makes choosing the right plant species or variety a complicated task. That studies have employed different methods to examine the noise-reducing properties of individual hedges and shrubby groups of trees only complicates matters further. The present study interprets and summarises the achieved results via an analysis of the relevant literature using statistical methods. We focused on the following areas: (1) commonness and value range to compare the general data of the selected studies, (2) location types and the measurement layouts, (3) the parameters used to describe the vegetation strips, and (4) the parameters used for noise measurement and attenuation calculation. In addition to the diversity of the examined environment and vegetation in the studies, the description of the implementation and physical characteristics of the measurements was, in many cases, incomplete in several aspects. At the same time, the differences between the employed parameters and their evaluation resulted in partially comparable noise attenuation data, thereby increasing the inhomogeneity in the literature.
