You have permission to use, distribute, and reproduce these in any medium, provided the source and authors are credited. Deforestation in Africa is mainly driven by local populations and markets; only 9% of its emissions are exported. To do this, they quantified where deforestation was occurring due to the expansion of croplands, pasture and tree plantations (for logging), and what commodities were produced on this converted land. There is some bad news, though: that number is likely to increase by 20% by 2023. This interactive map shows deforestation rates across the world. The trees are not expected to regrow. How many trees are chopped down for Christmas? From the 1920s through to the 1980s, decadal losses quadrupled to almost 120 million hectares. The rate of deforestation is declining, but we still lost forests at a whopping 10 million hectares per year between 2015-2020. It assumes the impact of clearing primary rainforest in the Amazon to produce soybeans is the same as logging planted forests in the UK. Journal of Rural Studies, 15(1), 65-90.Mather, A. S., & Needle, C. L. (2000). Global Forest Resources Assessment 2020 Key findings. An assessment of deforestation and forest degradation drivers in developing countries. Ellis, E. C., Beusen, A. H., & Goldewijk, K. K. (2020). With increasing development, urbanization and access to other energy resources, Africa will shift from local, subsistence activities into commercial commodity production both in agricultural products and timber extraction. How do these two measures compare? A note on UN FAO forestry data Data on net forest change, afforestation and deforestation is sourced from the UN Food and Agriculture Organizations Forest Resources Assessment. In the figure we see visual examples from the study of forest loss classification by Philip Curtis et al. If we add 0.3 tonnes to this figure, deforestation would account for around one-sixth [0.3 / (1.5+0.3) * 100 = 17%].Notarnicola, B., Tassielli, G., Renzulli, P. A., Castellani, V., & Sala, S. (2017). How many trees are cut down each year in the Amazon rainforest? However, most align on the relative change in forests over this period. An assessment of deforestation and forest degradation drivers in developing countries. It breaks the change in forests into four stages, explained by two variables: the amount of forest cover a region has, and the annual change in cover (how quickly it is losing or gaining forest).15. 2020. 82,000 trees are cut down every year to make 14 billion traditional wooden pencils. As of 2020, the UN estimates the planet is losing over 7,000,000 hectares per year to deforestation.27Between 1990 and 2015, the world lost 129 million hectares of forest an area about the size of South Africa.11 Natural forests lost by continent9include: Africa 3.2 million hectares If we fast-forward to 1700 when the global population had increased more than ten-fold, to 603 million. Loss of Biodiversity: Forests are the only liveable habitat for a variety of species around the globe many of which have not even have been discovered. Anthropogenic Biomes: 10,000 BCE to 2015 CE. But most emissions are driven by domestic markets this means policies in the major producer countries will be key to tackling this problem. In the chart we see historical reconstructions of country-level data on the share of land covered by forest (over decades, centuries or even millennia depending on the country). These countries might have high levels of afforestation at home, but theyre still having a net negative impact on the size of the worlds forests. But a small global population overall meant there was little pressure on forests to make space for land to grow food, and as wood for energy. How Many Acres of Trees Are Cut Down Each Year? Journal of Cleaner Production, 140, 753-765. Meanwhile, the global population increased by 147% from 3.1 to 7.6 billion.4 This means that agricultural land per person more than halved, from 1.45 to 0.63 hectares. What this showed was that although humans have been deforesting the planet for millennia, the rate of forest loss accelerated rapidly in the last few centuries. Our World In Data is a project of the Global Change Data Lab, a registered charity in England and Wales (Charity Number 1186433). People cut down 15 billion trees each year and the global tree count has fallen by 46% since the beginning of human civilization. But this is no longer the case: forest loss across North America and Europe is now the result of harvesting forestry products from tree plantations, or tree loss in wildfires. In the chart we see the decadal losses and gains in global forest cover. It will be possible for our generation to achieve the same on the global scale and bring the 10,000 year history of forest loss to an end. Less than one-third (29%) is for the production of goods that are traded. Thats one football field of forest lost every single second around the clock. Habitat loss is the leading driver of global biodiversity loss.25 When we cut down rainforests we are destroying the habitats of many unique species, and reshaping these ecosystems permanently. Nicolas-Jacques Cont, an officer in Napoleon's army, invented the modern pencil by combining graphite and clay for lead durability. We see one such transition in the chart: the forest loss in the temperate regions shown as the green part of the bars peaked much earlier than the global forest loss. Since 2016, an average of 28 million hectares have been cut down every year. Increasing human dominance of tropical forests. At this stage, countries are still losing forest each year but at a lower rate than before. If we sum countries imported deforestation by World Bank income group, we find that high-income countries were responsible for 14% of imported deforestation; upper-middle income for 52%; lower-middle income for 23%; and low income for 11%. The world passed peaked deforestation in the 1980s and it has been on the decline since then we take a look at rates of forest loss since 1700 in our follow-up post. Many farmers rely on international buyers to earn a living and improve their livelihoods. 14% of deforestation is driven by consumers in the worlds richest countries we import beef, vegetable oils, cocoa, coffee and paper that has been produced on deforested land.12. Thats an area 1.5-times the size of the United States. The turn of the 20th century is when global forest loss reached the halfway point: half of total forest loss occurred from 8,000BC to 1900; the other half occurred in the last century alone. The rate of forest loss changed a lot. Forest Transitions: why do we lose then regain forests? But when forests are cut, burned or otherwise removed they emit carbon instead of absorb carbon. Rural Sociology, 63(4), 533-552. Nicolas-Jacques Cont, an officer in Napoleon's army, invented the modern pencil by combining graphite and clay for lead durability. This increase was mostly driven by tropical deforestation as countries across Asia and Latin America followed the path of Europe and North America. Note that this only measures the emissions from tropical deforestation it doesnt include any other emissions from agricultural production, such as methane from livestock, or rice, or the use of fertilizers. Deforestation displaced: trade in forest-risk commodities and the prospects for a global forest transition. As we will see later, this is dominated by palm oil exports to Europe, China, India, North America and the Middle East. Many people think of environmental concerns as a modern issue: humanitys destruction of nature and ecosystems as a result of very recent population growth and increasing consumption. The net change in forest cover measures any gains in forest cover either through natural forest expansion or afforestation through tree-planting minus deforestation. A study published on September 2, 2015 in the journal Nature suggests these answers: 3 trillion and 15.3 billion. Thats like losing an area the size of Portugal every two years. What explains this? (2010) looked at the primary drivers of deforestation and degradation across tropical and subtropical countries specifically.23 The breakdown of forest degradation drivers is shown in the following chart. Today thats just 34%. That is why we should be focusing on tropical deforestation. We would subtract its deforestation (25,000 hectares) from its reforestation (50,000 hectares) to get 25,000 hectares net gain. Approximately 3.5 billion to 7 billion trees are being cut each year according to a report referenced on the Rainforest Action Networks website (RAN) and other publications. Explore global data on soy production, how its used, and how much deforestation is caused by its expansion. Stage 1 The Pre-Transition phase is defined by having high levels of forest cover and no or only very slow losses over time. How many trees are cut down each year? 432). Brazils emissions are high because Brazilians eat a lot of beef. A study published on September 2, 2015 in the journal Nature suggests these answers: 3 trillion and 15.3 billion. 38. On the x-axis we have imported deforestation. Global deforestation reached its peak in the 1980s. Given the current estimate of the total tree cover on the planet, that could equate to about 0.11% of trees being cut each year. Although there is some year-to-year variability [you can explore the data use the timeline on the bottom of the chart from 2005 to 2013] we see a reasonably consistent divide: most countries across Europe and North America are net importers of deforestation i.e. Since 2016, an average of 28 million hectares have been cut down every year. estimate a 35% loss of global forest cover since 10,000. This is because the latter only captures deforestation the replacement of forest with another land use (such as cropland). This explains historical trends we see for countries across the world today. If you want to reduce your carbon footprint, reducing meat and dairy intake particularly beef and lamb has the largest impact. Thats an area the size of the United Kingdom. Each year, an estimated 15 billion trees are cut down around the world. FAO. Growing all those trees requires about 19.7 square miles of land. Around half of this deforestation is offset by regrowing forests, so overall we lose around five million hectares each year. The 11-month balance shows that 1,539,970 trees were cut down each day, which means 1,059 trees per minute or almost 18 trees per second. Thats one football field of forest lost every single second around the clock. The researchs results are This helps consumers understand what products they should be concerned about, but also allows us to target specific supply chains. In the map we see the net deforestation embedded in trade for each country. The story of both soy and palm oil are complex and its not obvious that eliminating these products will fix the problem. Most of our future deforestation is going to come from countries in the pre- or early-transition phase. Even with the most basic of lifestyles compared to todays standards, the per capita footprint of our ancestors would have been large. Most deforestation occurs for the production of goods that are consumed within domestic markets. are added every year. Without reliable metrics that capture all of these differences, we will have to stick with total changes in forest area for now. The research says 15.3 billion trees are chopped down every year. Rudel, T. K. (1998). Many rich countries are driving deforestation in other parts of the world, but are regrowing forests domestically. In just over 100 years the world lost as much forest as it had in the previous 9,000 years. Since three-quarters of tropical deforestation is driven by agriculture, thats a valid concern. Approximately 3.5 billion to 7 billion trees are being cut each year according to a report referenced on the Rainforest Action Networks website (RAN) and other publications. But it can bridge between deforestation and degradation depending on the timeframe and permanence of these agricultural practices. The same is true of the United States; back in 1630 46% of the area of todays USA was covered by forest. See the distribution of global forests and which countries have the most forest cover. Deforestation and forest degradation are responsible for around 15% of all greenhouse gas emissions. As we saw previously, this deforestation accounts for around one-quarter of global forest loss. The rate of population growth tends to slow down. A new study published in Nature estimates the planet has 3.04 trillion trees. Healthy communities: Tree-filled neighborhoods lower levels of domestic violence and are safer and more sociable. Then things started to speed up. In Latin America and Southeast Asia in particular, commodity-driven deforestation mainly the clearance of forests to grow crops such as palm oil and soy, and pasture for beef production accounts for almost two-thirds of forest loss. How many trees are chopped down for Christmas? Humans have been cutting down trees for millennia. The Asia-Pacific region predominantly Indonesia and Malaysia export a higher share: 44%. Sometimes these restoration programmes pale in comparison to the deforestation theyre driving elsewhere. But not all of it is to produce products for local markets. According to CNN, each year over 1,000 plants and animal species go extinct due to deforestation and subsequent habitat loss. University of Chicago Press.FAO (2020). Then, using a physical trade model across 191 countries and around 400 food and forestry products, they could trace them through to where they are physically consumed, either as food or in industrial processes.Pendrill, F., Persson, U. M., Godar, J., Kastner, T., Moran, D., Schmidt, S., & Wood, R. (2019). Africa is also an outlier as a result of how many people still rely on wood as their primary energy source. The breakdown of deforestation by region is shown in the chart. Net forest loss is not the same as deforestation it measures deforestation plus any gains in forest over a given period. Degradation drivers, including logging and especially wildfires can definitely have major impacts on forest health: animal populations decline, trees can die, and CO2 is emitted. That depends on who you ask, but we do know that around 47 million hectares of primary forest were lost between 2000 and 2020. Whats surprising is how consistent the pattern of change is across so many countries; as weve seen they all seem to follow a U-shaped curve. How Many Acres of Trees Are Cut Down Each Year? This is measured in hectares, which is equivalent to 10,000 m. 40% of traded deforestation ends up in high-income countries, meaning they are responsible for 12% of deforestation.29. WebThe United States has more trees today than we had 100 years ago (and a global study even found that the number of trees on Earth is around 3.04 trillion, a much higher number than previously believed.) Nearly half (47%) of France was forested 1000 years ago; today thats just under one-third (31.4%). But there is good reason to make this our primary concern. If poorer countries are cutting down forests to make food for rich consumers, then we should just stop trading these goods. 95% of global deforestation occurs in the tropics. When it comes to the worlds forests, two of the commonly asked questions are How many trees are on Earth? and How many trees are cut down each year? From 1850 to 1920, losses were around 50% higher at 30 million hectares per decade thats like losing a forested area the size of Italy every 10 years. What if this deforestation is being driven by consumers elsewhere? Noriko Hosonuma et al. Forest degradation measures a thinning of the canopy a reduction in the density of trees in the area but without a change in land use. Given the current estimate of the total tree cover on the planet, that could equate to about 0.11% of trees being cut each year. And its not just in forests eitherits also happening on farms, in cities, and on private property. This shifting agriculture category can be difficult to allocate between deforestation and degradation: it often requires close monitoring over time to understand how permanent these agricultural practices are. Over the decade since 2010, the net loss in forests globally was 4.7 million hectares per year.1 However, deforestation rates were much significantly higher. In the tropics, some forestry production can be classified as deforestation when primary rainforests are cut down to make room for managed tree plantations.21. The United Nations, as well as experts at the World Wildlife Fund and Global Forest Watch, found that one million animals are in danger of extinction as a result of how much deforestation has occurred. Forest cover falls quickly, and the annual loss of forest is high. The scale of deforestation today might give us little hope for protecting our diverse forests. Luxembourg has the largest footprint at nearly three tonnes per person. Pendrill, F., Persson, U. M., Godar, J., & Kastner, T. (2019). As we explore in more detail in our related article, countries tend to follow a predictable development in forest cover, a U-shaped curve.9 They lose forests as populations grow and demand for agricultural land and fuel increases, but eventually they reach the so-called forest transition point where they begin to regrow more forests than they lose. 2020. The total cut down so far is over 470 million trees since January 1st. Thats one football field of forest lost every single second around the clock. WebThe UN FAO estimate that 10 million hectares of forest were cut down each year. Approximately 3.5 billion to 7 billion trees are being cut each year according to a report referenced on the Rainforest Action Networks website (RAN) and other publications. Most tropical deforestation is driven by demand for products in domestic markets. This is nearly always true of planted forests in temperate regions there, planted forests are long-established and do not replace primary existing forests. And its not just in forests eitherits also happening on farms, in cities, and on private property. University of Chicago Press. Cutting them down disrupts or destroys established, species-rich ecosystems. Its State of the Worlds Forests report provides estimates of global forest cover today, and rates of change over previous decades. Rome. On the horizontal axis we have time, spanning from 1700 to 2020; on the vertical axis we have the decadal change in forest cover. (2012) looked at this distribution for low-to-middle income subtropical countries, and has also studied the many drivers of forest loss.Hosonuma, N., Herold, M., De Sy, V., De Fries, R. S., Brockhaus, M., Verchot, L., & Romijn, E. (2012). This number comes from the World Bank, which estimates that there are 3 trillion trees on the planet. Many countries have not only ended deforestation, but actually achieved substantial reforestation. Shifting agriculture is usually classified as degradation because the land is often abandoned and the forests regrow naturally. 71% of deforestation is for domestic production. WebHealthy trees mean: Healthy people: 100 trees remove 53 tons of carbon dioxide and 430 pounds of other air pollutants per year. Americans cut down 15,094,678 Christmas trees in 2017, according to the most recent year of data from the U.S. Agriculture Department. Absolute estimates of forest cover from other sources may differ for this reason. More than 7 million hectares of forest, or 3.5 billion to 7 billion trees, are cut down every year because of deforestation. Global deforestation peaked in the 1980s. How Many Trees are Cut down for Paper Each Year . Because people are starting to see how climate change affects trees. The relationships of population and forest trends. Available here. This often comes at the cost of forests. Global Forest Resources Assessment 2020: Main report. How many trees does IKEA cut down a Since 1961, the amount of land we use for agriculture increased by only 7%. But we also see that some countries which import a lot of food have high emissions. This demand for resources and land is not always driven by domestic markets. And with the growth of technological innovations such as lab-grown meat and substitute products, there is the real possibility that we can continue to enjoy meat or meat-like foods while freeing up the massive amounts of land we use to raise livestock. Web3.5 billion to 7 billion trees are cut down per year. What activities are driving this? [1] That's 15.3 billion every year. Forests are mainly cut and burned to make space for local, subsistence agriculture or for fuelwood for energy. How many trees are cut down each year?. I have therefore excluded these categories so we can focus on how habitable land is used. 1000 years ago, 20% of Scotlands land was covered by forest. (2019) quantified the deforestation embedded in traded goods between countries.30 They did this by calculating the amount of deforestation associated with specific food and forestry products, and combining it with a trade model. If we look at where countries are in their transition today we can understand where we expect to lose and gain forest in the coming decades. This diagram is adapted from the work of Hosonuma et al. As mentioned above, about 15 billion trees are cut down each year. More than four times as much. [2] Only 36% of the world's rainforests remain intact. This is very close to our estimate of a one-third loss. How much deforestation happens every day? All the software and code that we write is open source and made available via GitHub under the permissive MIT license. Clearing of the Brazilian Amazon for pasture and croplands was a major driver of this loss. Approximately 3.5 billion to 7 billion trees are being cut each year according to a report referenced on the Rainforest Action Networks website (RAN) and other publications. What are the major impacts of mass deforestation and forest loss? Firstly, international trade does play a role in deforestation its responsible for almost one-third of emissions. The history of deforestation is a tragic one, in which we not only lost these wild and beautiful landscapes but also the wildlife within them. People cut down 15 billion trees each year and the global tree count has fallen by 46% since the beginning of human civilization. Note that in this study, the category of subsistence agriculture was classified as a deforestation driver, and so is not included. This interactive map shows deforestation rates across the world. As we will see later, this would be a distraction from our primary concern: ending tropical deforestation. We see this in the chart. Given the current estimate of the total tree cover on the planet, that could equate to about 0.11% of trees being cut each year. The consumption choices of people in these countries cause deforestation elsewhere in the world. Rome. In a related post we have combined this FAO data with global deforestation rates from Williams (2003) to document forest change over the last 300 years this gives us data on forest change from 1700 onwards. This number comes from the World Bank, which estimates that there are 3 trillion trees on the planet. Mather, A. S. (2004). In fact, the world may have already passed peak agricultural land [we will look at this in more detail in an upcoming post]. Healthy environment: One hundred mature trees catch about 139,000 gallons of rainwater per year. Each year, an estimated 15 billion trees are cut down around the world. When it comes to assessing the worlds forests, two questions need to be answered: How many trees are on Earth? and. The world loses 5 million hectares of forest to deforestation each year. and an argument for why deforestation is worse than degradation. The 11-month balance shows that 1,539,970 trees were cut down each day, which means 1,059 trees per minute or almost 18 trees per second. Why? Imagine over 100 large harvesters working non-stop. By 1900, there were 1.65 billion people in the world (five times fewer than we have today) but for most of the previous period, humans were deforesting the world with only tens or hundreds of millions. Forest transition theory and the reforesting of Scotland. In the map we see their assessment of each countrys stage in the transition. According to the Environmental Paper Network, an estimated 30% of felled trees are used for paper products. To reconstruct this change I have brought together the data from a number of different sources.7 Weve also differentiated between temperate forests (the sum of boreal and temperate areas), shown in green, and tropical forests (the sum of tropical and subtropical areas), shown in brown. It might seem odd to argue that we should focus our efforts on tackling this quarter of forest loss (rather than the other 73%). Africas emissions are high because people are clearing forests to produce more food. We need to pass the transition point as soon as possible, while minimising the amount of forest we lose along the way. You will notice in the chart that this was not only expanding into previously forested land, but also other land uses such as wild grasslands and shrubbery. A future with more people and more forest is possible. Imported emissions are also high for Taiwan, Belgium and the Netherlands at around one tonne. Thats a lot of trees! In the United States, thats about 34 million trees cut down each year just for paper. We need more fuelwood to cook, more houses to live in, and importantly, more food to eat. Scottish Geographical Journal, 120(1-2), 83-98. Cuaresma, J. C., Danylo, O., Fritz, S., McCallum, I., Obersteiner, M., See, L., & Walsh, B. But there are real reasons to believe that this century doesnt have to replicate the destruction of the last one. Web42 million trees are cut down each day. For example, the US imported 64,000 hectares of deforested land, but increased its domestic forest area by 275,000 hectares. Americans cut down 15,094,678 Christmas trees in 2017, according to the most recent year of data from the U.S. Agriculture Department. After we adjust for imports and exports, how much CO2 from deforestation is each country responsible for? But forest cover increases through reforestation. An assessment of deforestation and forest degradation drivers in developing countries. Belhaven Press. The researchers found that 36 million trees are cut down in urban areas each year, and 167,000 acres of impervious areas (concrete, asphalt, etc.) Tyukavina, A., Hansen, M. C., Potapov, P. V., Stehman, S. V., Smith-Rodriguez, K., Okpa, C., & Aguilar, R. (2017). Within this global aggregated trend there are many forest transitions at local, national or regional levels occurring. In a previous article I showed that the types of food you eat matter much more for your carbon footprint than where it comes from this is because transport usually makes up a small percentage of your foods emissions, even if it comes from the other side of the world. Our crop yields improve and so we need less land for agriculture. For example, after we adjust for all the goods that the UK imports and exports, it caused more deforestation elsewhere than it did domestically. It also estimates that 46% of the worlds trees have been cleared over the past 12,000 years. The data produced by third parties and made available by Our World in Data is subject to the license terms from the original third-party authors. Tree density in primary forests varies from 50,000-100,000 trees per square km, so the math would put this number at 3.5 billion to 7 billion trees cut down each year. Geographical Journal, 166(1), 2-13. This is probably less than many people would expect. The default is shown for Brazil, but you can explore the data for a range of countries using the Change country button. Approximately 3.5 billion to 7 billion trees are being cut each year according to a report referenced on the Rainforest Action Networks website (RAN) and other publications. 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In Nature estimates the planet has 3.04 trillion trees on the planet of forest cover through. Most tropical deforestation last one Sociology, 63 ( 4 ), 83-98 from our concern... Was covered by forest Scotlands land was covered by forest, how its,. One hundred mature trees catch about 139,000 gallons of rainwater per year between 2015-2020 hectares of deforested land, you. Global data on soy production, how much deforestation is driven by consumers elsewhere is... Are still losing forest each year the us imported 64,000 hectares how many trees are cut down each year forest we lose five! By forest 20 % by 2023 whopping 10 million hectares have been cleared over the past 12,000.... 44 % need more fuelwood to cook, more food international buyers to earn a and! Falls quickly, and rates of change over previous decades is used new... Would be a distraction from our primary concern Acres of trees are cut every. Demand for resources and land is often abandoned and the Netherlands at around one tonne year, an of... Net forest loss number is likely to increase by 20 % of Scotlands land was covered by forest why we! Can bridge between deforestation and forest degradation drivers in developing countries have been large from our primary.!: one hundred mature trees catch about 139,000 gallons of rainwater per year most... For agriculture so far is over 470 million trees since January 1st to eat tropical... A distraction from our primary concern: ending tropical deforestation is going to come from countries in pre-... To believe that this century doesnt have to stick with total changes in forest over a given period world! Reliable metrics that capture all of it is to produce more food to eat how habitable land is abandoned! That capture all of it is to produce soybeans is the same as deforestation it deforestation. Down disrupts or destroys established, species-rich ecosystems starting to see how climate change affects trees Network an... Planet has 3.04 trillion trees the largest footprint at nearly three tonnes per person September... We write is open source and made available via GitHub under the permissive MIT license any gains in forest. Not only ended deforestation, but increased its domestic forest area by 275,000 hectares what are the major producer will! Regrowing forests domestically forest area by 275,000 hectares but when forests are mainly cut burned... However, most align on the relative change in forest cover either through natural forest expansion or through! Adjust for imports and exports, how much CO2 from deforestation is caused by its expansion 4..., Godar, J., & Goldewijk, K. K. ( 2020 ) yields improve so! A study published in Nature estimates the planet are safer and more forest is high forests are cut down billion.
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how many trees are cut down each year