A new study shows that tropical forest destruction in 2020 skyrocketed by up to 12% compared to the previous year. This worries experts of a devastating future if the trend isn't acted on immediately.
Tropical forests that serve as natural carbon capture mechanisms, habitats for numerous organisms, and a source of food and income for millions across the globe were destroyed at an increasing rate in 2020 compared to previous years. This is despite the global economic downturn caused by the onslaught of the global pandemic that significantly reduced demands for commodities that spur deforestation in the past.
Global Deforestation Analysis
Global acreage loss increased by 12% in 2020 compared to deforestation rates in 2019 according to the World Resources Institute--Washington-based researchers annually reporting on the subject.
The report shows that more than 100 million acres, roughly the size of Switzerland, of tropical forests, were lost in 2020
The analysis shows that such loss of forests added more than 2 ½ billion metric tons of CO2 to the atmosphere, roughly twice as much carbon dioxide emitted by cars in the US annually.
Rod Taylor, global director of the World Resources Institute's forest program, says that the planet is still losing primary forests at unacceptable rates. Where a 12% increase yearly is too much considering that the trend should be going down.
Unprecedented Forest Loss
Brazil, home to most of the Amazon rainforest once again led the world in terms of forest loss by a wide margin as pro-development policies led to the continued widespread clear-cutting of trees and acreage.
A surge in deforestation was also seen in Cameroon, West Africa, and Colombia where losses skyrocketed in 2020 after a promising drop the year before.
On the other hand, Indonesia and Malaysia saw a decline in forest loss from 2019. 2020 marked Indonesia's 4th year in a row in a significant decline in deforestation rates, a sign that the government continues succeeding in its efforts to halt deforestation following the devastation of the 2015 fire season.
Like previous years, the institute says that tropical forest loss is typically driven by agriculture, commodities production such as cocoa or palm oil, or small farmers' subsistence efforts. Forests are often clear-cut and the resulting debris is then burned to prepare the field.
Often these fires grow out of control, resulting in even greater forest loss and warming and drying brought by climate change can also aggravate the situation.
The data was provided by researchers at the Global Land Analysis and Discovery Laboratory, University of Maryland, that devised methods to analyze satellite imagery to effectively determine forest covers across the globe.
The World Resources Insitute refers to the findings as 'forest cover loss' because the analysis includes trees lost from plantations and does not discriminate between trees lot due to anthropogenic activities or natural causes.
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