Forest Canopy Cover Loss - Germany - Monthly, 10m

The method records how often a threshold is exceeded for each individual pixel and image. This is counted over time, and a pixel is labeled FCCL when the threshold is exceeded in six consecutive observations. Towards the end of the time series, i.e. the last five months, the confidence of each recorded FCCL is lower due to the reduced length of available observations. In particular, the last two (in some locations three) months show a considerable increase in FCCL, likely an overestimation. Therefore, we consider these records alerts and do not include them in the 2024 statistics. They are, however, included in the pixelbased results.

Layers

The dataset contains the follwing layers:

FCCL Germany, Monthly (FCCL_DE_P1M.tif): The layer shows the forest canopy cover loss (FCCL) in Germany in monthly resolution between September 2017 and September 2024 at 10 m spatial resolution.

FCCL Germany, Result Mask (FCCL_DE_P1M_MASK.tif): The layer shows a decision tree-based classification of the FCCL layer into intact forest, (consistent) FCCL, and temporal changes in coniferous, deciduous, and unclassified forests.

FCCL Germany, Observed Changes (FCCL_DE_P1M_CHANGES.tif): The layer displays how often an observation exceeded a threshold. It is also counted in pixels not labeled as FCCL.

FCCL Germany, Precentage of Gaps (FCCL_DE_P1M_GAPS.tif): The layer shows the percentage of gaps (i.e., an observation not exceeding a threshold) in pixels labeled as FCCL.

Attributes

FCCL
This layer is the final result depicting forest canopy cover losses. Value range: NaN = no forest, 0 = intact forest, 1 (September 2017) to 98 (October 2025). Forests are delineated based on the Thuenen Holzbodenmaske 2018.

Result mask
This layer is based on FCCL_fullseries_GER.tif such that FCCL areas are attributed to consistent change, temporary changes in conifers, temporary changes in broadleaf forests, and temporary change in unknown forests. Value range: NaN = no forest, 0 = intact forest, 1 = FCCL, 2 = temporary disturbance in conifers (i.e., maximum two consecutive years of anomalies and no anomaly afterwards assuming recovery in e.g. pine forests after a insect infestation; spruce are not considered since these cannot recover from defoliation), 3 = temporary disturbance in broadleaf forests (same criteria; occurs e.g. in oaks after recovery from specific insects), 4 = temporary disturbance in unknown forests (same criteria). Forest types are based on the Blickensdoerfer dominant tree species map; birch, beech, oak, alder, odh, odl are classified as deciduous; Douglas fir, spruce, pine, larch, fir are classified as coniferous; areas covered by the Thuenen Holzboden map 2018 and unclassified in the Blickensdoerfer map are filled with the dominant leaf type of the respective Copernicus DLT 2015 product. ATTENTION: should be treated with care but gives a hint if disturbances are temporary or stand replacing, particularly helpful in pine forests and sometimes in deciduous forests.

Observed changes
This is the total number of detected anomalies irrespective if it resulted in a FCCL; helps to identify areas where anomalies were generally detected but not recorded (including artifacts due to missed clouds but also temporary defoliation late in season etc.). Value range = NaN = no forest, 0 = no anomaly detected, 1 to 85 = number of observed anomalies.

Gap percentage
this layer computes the number of gaps, e.g. those observations in a series of anomalies where no anomaly was detected expressed as percentage; can be an artifact but can also occur when recovery sets in; is Zero when an anomaly is consistently observed, can be rather large when a temporary anomaly was detected at the beginning. Value range: NaN = no forest, 0 = no gap (in FCCL areas) or no anomaly, 1 to 95 = percentages. ATTENTION: if a FCCL was detected rather recently the same gapcount results in a higher percentage than if a FCCL was detected at the beginning of the time series.