Open Access

Peter Seffah-Duodu

• Onshore wind energy, the highest share of electricity production and the cheapest form of electricity in Germany has become an essential part of Germany’s aim to reach greenhouse gas neutrality in 2045. Still, its development faces social rejection due to perceived health problems that are as a result of wind turbines construction in close proximity to settlements. Forest, the second largest land use in Germany provides consistent wind resources for further expansion of wind energy generation but the social perception about wind energy in the forest is not great as forest is identified as the second largest natural carbon sink and provides some ecological benefits to humans and animals. This thesis sought to provide a quantitative comparison of the climate impact of wind turbines and forests. Forest carbon stock of German forests was extracted from the German National Forest Inventory (NFI) database on the seven tree species and 2 species classification. The data available were the tree size and tree age. A multiple linear regression was used to estimate the influence of tree age and tree size on the carbon stock on a tree species. The model was performed using R language. The emission saving of Vestas V162-6.0 wind turbine was estimated and the results were compared to those of the results of the multiple linear regression. It was determined that the emissions payback period of the wind turbine was seven (7) months, and the emissions avoided per year by the wind turbine was equivalent to the carbon stock of about 28 hectares of a matured forest. The research showed that both forest and wind energy are gains to climate change but in different ways and to be able to meet the climate goals, there should be a harmonious use of both resources.