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Deforestation is defined as the conversion of forest to other land uses (regardless of whether it is human-induced). [14] Deforestation and forest area net change are not the same: the latter is the sum of all forest losses (deforestation) and all forest gains (forest expansion) in a given period. Net change, therefore, can be positive or ...
For example, in the past, it could take a long time to log a small amount of trees using only saws. Due to better technology, the rates of deforestation have greatly increased. [6] Overconsumption has created a high demand for natural resources, further exacerbating natural resource exploitation [7]
Satellite photograph of deforestation in Bolivia.Originally dry tropical forest, the land is being cleared for soybean cultivation. [5]Biodiversity hotspots are chiefly tropical regions that feature high concentrations of endemic species and, when all hotspots are combined, may contain over half of the world's terrestrial species. [6]
[7] [6] This accounts for about 14% of the world's total annual deforestation, making it the largest driver of deforestation globally. [8] The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations reported in 2006 that 70% of previously forested land in the Amazon, as well as 91% of land deforested since 1970, is now used for livestock pasture .
Deforestation in the tropics – given as the annual average between 2010 and 2014 – was responsible for 2.6 billion tonnes of CO 2 per year. That was 6.5% of global CO 2 emissions . Deforestation is a primary contributor to climate change , [ 1 ] [ 2 ] and climate change affects the health of forests. [ 3 ]
According to Nelson, [20] deforestation and degradation affect 8.5% of the world's forests with 30% of the Earth's surface already cropped. If we consider that 80% of people rely on medicines obtained from plants and 3 ⁄ 4 of the world's prescription medicines have ingredients taken from plants, [ 17 ] loss of the world's rainforests could ...
Deforestation occurs when humans remove trees from a forested area by cutting or burning, either to harvest timber or to make way for farming. Most deforestation today occurs in tropical forests. The vast majority of this deforestation is because of the production of four commodities: wood, beef, soy, and palm oil. [15]
As the need for new agricultural areas and road construction increases, the deforestation processes stay in effect. Deforestation is the "removal of forest or stand of trees from land that is converted to non-forest use." (Wikipedia-Deforestation). Since the 1960s, nearly 50% of tropical forests have been destroyed, but this process is not ...