Overview

• The satellite assessment for 2017–2024 counts more than 900,000 hectares lost, equal to roughly 8.5% of Germany’s forest area.
• The pace of decline has nearly doubled since 2021, pointing to a worsening trend.
• Damage concentrates in the Harz, South Westphalia/Bergisches Land and southeast Thuringia, with local crown losses up to about 45% in Sonneberg and around 36% in Oberbergischer Kreis and Landkreis Harz.
• DLR links the widespread losses to drought, heatwaves, storms and pest outbreaks over recent years.
• A new online platform publishes the maps for the timber industry, municipalities and policymakers, though very young regrowth is not detectable in the seven‑year window.