To Save Nature, Countries Should Eliminate Subsidies That Harm Forests

A new analysis finds that European and UK governments are paying billions of euros a year to industries that harm forests, even as the same countries have signed on to global goals to cut this kind of funding. The report, commissioned by the environmental group NRDC, looked at Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden, the UK, and the European Commission. It found these governments handed out 16 billion euros in 2024 to bioenergy and other forest-harming industries, with a similar 18 billion euros a year flowing out from 2023 through 2025, showing little sign of change.

Much of the money subsidizes biomass power plants, which burn wood for electricity. Despite producing more emissions than fossil fuels, this wood burning is classified as renewable and carbon-free, letting the industry skip taxes it would otherwise owe on carbon markets. Billions more go to agriculture, logging, housing, and road building, activities tied to forest loss both in Europe and in the countries these nations import from, including deforestation in South America linked to growing soy for cattle feed.

This story is about government policy in Europe and the UK, not a direct program homeowners can tap into. But if you rely on wood pellets, wood chips, or biomass heating, it's worth knowing that these fuels are treated as "carbon-neutral" under current rules, even though researchers and advocacy groups dispute that label on climate grounds.