You are on page 1of 13

World deforestation rates and forest cover statistics, 2000-2005

Rhett A. Butler, mongabay.com


November 16, 2005


New deforestation figures show Nigeria has worst rate of forest loss

[2010 update]
Nigeria has the world's highest deforestation rate, Brazil loses the largest area of
forest annually, and Congo consumes more bushmeat than any other tropical country.
These are among the findings from mongabay.com's analysis of new deforestation
figures from the United Nations.

Monday, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) released
its 2005 Global Forest Resources Assessment, a regular report on the status world's
forest resources. Overall, FAO concludes that net deforestation rates have fallen since
the 1990-2000 period, but some 13 million hectares of the world's forests are still lost
each year, including 6 million hectares of primary forests. Primary forests -- forests
with no visible signs of past or present human activities -- are considered the most
biologically diverse ecosystems on the planet.

Industrial logging, clearing and forest conversion for agriculture, fuelwood collection by
rural poor, and forest fires -- often purposely set by people -- are considered the
leading causes of deforestation.

South America

South America -- where large tracts of the Amazon rainforest are being cleared for
cattle ranches and soybean plantations -- suffered the largest net loss of forests
between 2000 and 2005 of around 4.3 million hectares per year. Scientists are
concerned that forest loss could escalate in the Amazon due to increasingly dry
conditions. This year the Amazon suffered the most severe drought on record, leaving
rivers dry and communities stranded. Tens of thousands of fires burned.

Africa

Clear-cutting of rainforest in Peru. Tropical deforestation is a major concern to
Africa suffered the second
largest net loss in forests with
4.0 million hectares cleared
annually. Nigeria and Sudan
were the two largest losers of
natural forest during the
2000-2005 period, largely due
to subsistence activities. At
11.1%, Nigeria's annual
deforestation rate of natural
forest is the highest in the
world and puts it on pace to
lose virtually all of its primary
forest within a few years.
Malawi, currently in the midst
of a severe drought and famine, has the world's fourth highest deforestation rate.

FAO figures also show Africa is more dependent on bushmeat -- wild animals captured
as food -- than other tropical regions. Bushmeat availability has increased with the
construction of logging roads in the rainforest and a number of well-known species
including gorillas, chimpanzees, and monkeys are considered at highest risk. There is
growing concern among health experts that bushmeat consumption may be linked to
the outbreak of unusual tropical diseases including the Ebola virus and Marburg, which
broke out earlier this year in Angola. Primates are known to be carriers of these
diseases.

Central America, South Asia, and Southeast Asia lead deforestation rates

The regions with the highest tropical deforestation rate were Central America -- which
lost 1.3% or 285,000 hectares of its forests each year -- and tropical Asia. Tropical
Asia --
including the countries
of Bangladesh, Bhutan,
Brunei, Cambodia, East
Timor, India, Indonesia,
Laos, Malaysia,
Maldives, Myanmar,
Nepal, Pakistan,
Philippines, Singapore,
Sri Lanka, Thailand, and
Vietnam -- lost about
1% of its forests each
year. According to FAO,
Vietnam lost a
staggering 51% of its
primary forests between
2000 and 2005, while
Cambodia lost 29% of
its primary forests
between 2000 and 2005
[Cambodia's figures were revised by the FAO after this article was published. Original
data showed Cambodia's primary forest cover declining to 122,000 hectares in 2005
from 356,000 hectares in 2000. The new FAO data says Cambodia's current primary
ecologists. They warn that the loss of biodiversity has unknown consequences. Photo:
Rhett A. Butler

Please note: mongabay.com features thousands of pages on deforestation. Good places to
start include:
Overview of deforestation
Deforestation in the Amazon
Deforestation blog
Deforestation charts and graphs
Deforestation pictures
Explanation of deforestation for children
Deforestation rates for specific countries
Deforestation tables
Explanation of deforestation for children


Worst deforestation rate of natural forests, 2000-2005
Credits: R. Butler
forest cover stands at 322,000 hectares]. Illegal logging, combined with rapid
development, is blamed for much of Cambodia's forest loss.

Plantations offsetting natural forest

Due to a significant increase in plantation forests, forest cover has generally been
expanding in North America, Europe and China while diminishing in the tropics.
Plantations help offset the loss of natural forests but essentially result in an overall
decline in global biodiversity as single species plantations replace their biologically
richer natural counterparts.

The United States

The United States has the seventh largest annual loss of primary forests in the world,
according to FAO. In the 2000-2005 period, the United States lost an average of 831
square miles (215,200 hectares, 2,152 square kilometers or 531,771 acres) of such
lands which are sometimes termed "old-growth forests."

Highest deforestation of natural forests, 2000-2005. All countries. Credits: R. Butler


Overall, when plantations are added to the picture, the US gained a net 614 square
miles (159,000 hectares) of forest per year. The FAO report suggests America's
primary forests are losing ground to modified natural, seminatural, and plantation
forests. Earlier this year, the government revoked President Clinton's 2001 "Roadless
Area Conservation Rule" that protected 58.5 million acres of undeveloped national
forest, in effect opening more than 90,000 square miles of forests to road construction,
logging and industrial development.

UN figures contested
Some environmental groups have
criticized the UN numbers as
"misleading and inaccurate"
saying that FAO is using
industrial plantations to offset
deforestation figures for natural
forests while relying on flawed
figures provided by governments
that varying standards of forest
monitoring. The London-based
Rainforest Foundation notes that
"the UN figure is based on a
definition of forest as being an
area with as little as 10% actual
tree cover, which would therefore
include areas that are actually
savannah-like ecosystems and badly damaged forests." Further, says a press release
from the organization, "areas of land that presently have no trees on them at all, but
that are 'expected' to regenerate, are also counted as forests."

Despite the criticism, industry experts say that FAO has the best figures available
across virtually all countries in the world. Mila Alvarez, who tracks forest trends for
World Resources Institute and Global Forest Watch (globalforestwatch.org), told the
New York Times "The F.A.O. is doing the best it can given what the governments are
providing." Alvarez says the World Resources Institute and other organizations are
developing a way to use satellite imagery to analyze forest changes and to verify
government estimates.

More deforestation information:
Nigeria has worst deforestation rate, FAO revises figures

Breaking deforestation news at the deforestation blog

Please note: mongabay.com features thousands of pages on deforestation. Good
places to start include:
Overview of deforestation
Deforestation in the Amazon
Deforestation blog
Deforestation charts and graphs
Deforestation pictures
Explanation of deforestation for children
Deforestation rates for specific countries
Deforestation tables
Explanation of deforestation for children
Gold-mining operation the Peruvian Amazon. Scientists are concerned over the
global impact of deforestation in the tropics. The loss of forests adds the greenhouse
gas carbon dioxide to the atmosphere while affecting local rainfall. Photo: Rhett A.
Butler



Deforestation Charts


[ large medium small ]
Deforestation in the Brazlian Amazon, 1988-present
context of the image


[ large medium small ]
Causes of deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon, 2000-2005
context of the image


[ large medium small ]
Share of tropical deforestation, 2000-2005
context of the image


Deforestation rates by country, 1990-2005
context of the image




Regional drivers of deforestation
context of the image



Forest Tables
All area figures are in hectares.

Worst deforestation rate of primary forests, 2000-2005. All countries.
1

Nigeria

55.7%
2

Viet Nam

54.5%
3

Cambodia

29.4%
4

Sri Lanka

15.2%
5

Malawi

14.9%
6

Indonesia

12.9%
7

North Korea

9.3%
8

Nepal

9.1%
9

Panama

6.7%
10

Guatemala

6.4%


Highest average annual deforestation of primary forests, 2000-2005, by area.
All countries
1

Brazil

-3,466,000
2

Indonesia

-1,447,800
3

Russian Federation

-532,200
4

Mexico

-395,000
5

Papua New Guinea

-250,200
6

Peru

-224,600
7

United States of America

-215,200
8

Bolivia

-135,200
9

Sudan

-117,807
10

Nigeria

-82,000


Highest average annual deforestation of primary forests, 2000-2005, by area.
Tropical countries
1

Brazil

-3,466,000
2

Indonesia

-1,447,800
3

Mexico

-395,000
4

Papua New Guinea

-250,200
5

Peru

-224,600
6

Bolivia

-135,200
7

Sudan

-117,807
8

Nigeria

-82,000
9

Cambodia

-66,800
10

Colombia

-56,160
11

Panama

-43,200
12

Malawi

-39,600
13

Guatemala

-26,834
14

Viet Nam

-20,400
15

Democratic People's Republic of Korea

-17,400
16

French Guiana

-12,000
17

Senegal

-11,000
18

Nepal

-7,000
19

Madagascar

-6,800
20

Sri Lanka

-6,000


Most primary forest cover, 2005. All countries
1

Brazil

415,890
2

Russian Federation

255,470
3

Canada

165,424
4

United States of America

104,182
5

Peru

61,065
6

Colombia

53,062
7

Indonesia

48,702
8

Mexico

32,850
9

Bolivia

29,360
10

Papua New Guinea

25,211


Most primary forest cover, 2005. Tropical countries
1

Brazil

415,890
2

Peru

61,065
3

Colombia

53,062
4

Indonesia

48,702
5

Mexico

32,850
6

Bolivia

29,360
7

Papua New Guinea

25,211
8

Suriname

14,214
9

Sudan

13,509
10

Madagascar

10,347
11

Guyana

9,314
12

French Guiana

7,701
13

Congo

7,464
14

Thailand

6,451
15

Ecuador

4,794


Most "tropical rainforest", 2005. These rankings are estimates.

1

Brazil

2

Congo, Dem Rep

3

Peru

4

Indonesia

5

Colombia

6

Papua New Guinea

7

Venezuela

8

Bolivia

9

Mexico

10

Suriname

11

Guyana

12

Madagascar

13

French Guiana

14

Congo

15

Ecuador

16

Thailand

17

Malaysia

18

Panama

19

Guatemala

20

Nicaragua

21

Honduras

22

Laos

23

Philippines

24

Cte d'Ivoire

25

Belize


Most number of native tree species, 2005. All countries
1

Brazil

7,880
2

Colombia

5,000
3

Madagascar

5,000
4

Belize

4,000
5

Philippines

3,000
6

Bolivia

2,700
7

Malaysia

2,650
8

Zambia

2,621
9

Peru

2,500
10

China

2,500
11

Guinea-Bissau

2,243
12

Australia

2,100
13

Singapore

2,013
14

Brunei Darussalam

2,000
15

Myanmar

2,000
16

Zimbabwe

1,747
17

Mali

1,739
18

Lao People's Democratic Republic

1,457
19

Togo

1,451
20

Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of)

1,360


The Democratic Republic of Congo should be on this list, but FAO does not have figures for this war-torn country.

Highest total forest cover as a percentage of total land cover, 2005. All
countries
1

Suriname

94.7
2

French Guiana

91.8
3

Micronesia (Federated States of)

90.6
4

American Samoa

89.4
5

Seychelles

88.9
6

Palau

87.6
7

Gabon

84.5
8

Pitcairn

83.3
9

Turks and Caicos Islands

80
10

Solomon Islands

77.6
11

Guyana

76.7
12

Finland

73.9
13

Guinea-Bissau

73.7
14

Belize

72.5
15

Northern Mariana Islands

72.4
16

Anguilla

71.4
17

Lao People's Democratic Republic

69.9
18

Japan

68.2
19

Bhutan

68
20

Sweden

66.9


Includes plantations, non-natural and degraded forests

Highest total forest cover as a percentage of total land cover, 2005. All
tropical countries.
1

Suriname

94.7
2

French Guiana

91.8
3

Micronesia (Federated States of)

90.6
4

American Samoa

89.4
5

Seychelles

88.9
6

Palau

87.6
7

Gabon

84.5
8

Solomon Islands

77.6
9

Guyana

76.7
10

Guinea-Bissau

73.7
11

Belize

72.5
12

Northern Mariana Islands

72.4
13

Anguilla

71.4
14

Lao People's Democratic Republic

69.9
15

Bhutan

68
16

Cook Islands

66.5
17

Congo

65.8
18

Papua New Guinea

65
19

Malaysia

63.6
20

Dominica

61.3


Includes plantations, non-natural and degraded forests

Highest total forest cover as a percentage of total land cover, 2005. All
tropical countries excluding small islands
1

Suriname

94.7
2

French Guiana

91.8
3

Seychelles

88.9
4

Gabon

84.5
5

Guyana

76.7
6

Guinea-Bissau

73.7
7

Belize

72.5
8

Lao People's Democratic Republic

69.9
9

Bhutan

68
10

Congo

65.8
11

Papua New Guinea

65
12

Malaysia

63.6
13

Cambodia

59.2
14

Democratic Republic of the Congo

58.9
15

Colombia

58.5
16

Equatorial Guinea

58.2
17

Panama

57.7
18

Brazil

57.2
19

Zambia

57.1
20

Bolivia

54.2


Includes plantations, non-natural and degraded forests

Total forest cover, 2005. All countries
1

Russian Federation

808,790,000
2

Brazil

477,698,000
3

Canada

310,134,000
4

United States of America

303,089,000
5

China

197,290,000
6

Australia

163,678,000
7

Democratic Republic of the Congo

133,610,000
8

Indonesia

88,495,000
9

Peru

68,742,000
10

India

67,701,000
11

Sudan

67,546,000
12

Mexico

64,238,000
13

Colombia

60,728,000
14

Angola

59,104,000
15

Bolivia

58,740,000
16

Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of)

47,713,000
17

Zambia

42,452,000
18

United Republic of Tanzania

35,257,000
19

Argentina

33,021,000
20

Myanmar

32,222,000


Includes plantations, non-natural and degraded forests

Total forest cover, 2005. Tropical countries
1

Brazil

477,698,000
2

Democratic Republic of the Congo

133,610,000
3

Indonesia

88,495,000
4

Peru

68,742,000
5

India

67,701,000
6

Sudan

67,546,000
7

Mexico

64,238,000
8

Colombia

60,728,000
9

Angola

59,104,000
10

Bolivia

58,740,000
11

Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of)

47,713,000
12

Zambia

42,452,000
13

United Republic of Tanzania

35,257,000
14

Myanmar

32,222,000
15

Papua New Guinea

29,437,000
16

Central African Republic

22,755,000
17

Congo

22,471,000
18

Gabon

21,775,000
19

Cameroon

21,245,000
20

Malaysia

20,890,000


Includes plantations, non-natural and degraded forests

You might also like