Environment

Sharp increase in destruction of world’s forests last year

Tree loss adds more pressure on nations and businesses to cut carbon emissions

The 2020 numbers, the third worst for tree loss since 2002, seal off a year that once carried great hopes for efforts to stop the destruction. File photograph: iStock

Wed Mar 31 2021 - 07:09

Destruction of the world’s forests increased last year even as pandemic shutdowns curbed economic growth, adding more pressure on nations and businesses trying to cut carbon emissions.

Tree loss in the most critical tropical areas increased by 12 per cent in 2020 from the previous year, according to data released by Global Forest Watch, an initiative led by the World Resources Institute. Tropical losses overall contributed 2.6 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide pollution or the equivalent of annual emissions from 570 million cars.

The 2020 numbers, the third worst for tree loss since 2002, seal off a year that once carried great hopes for efforts to stop the destruction. The United Nations secretary general brought diplomats, business leaders and activists together in 2014 for a climate summit, where many would agree to an audacious goal to halve deforestation in just six years. The official failure to meet that goal, or even approach it, comes at a time when overall pressure to reduce CO2 emissions has increased dramatically.

Dozens of nations and hundreds of businesses are struggling to cut the impact of emissions from all sources to zero by 2050, in line with scientific guidance aimed at stemming global warming.

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Several nations had an outsize influence on tree loss and resulting CO2 emissions, which are driven by clearing land for production of meat, crops and wood. Global Forest Watch tracks "tree loss" instead of "deforestation" because the data includes both natural and grown forests, and also counts losses from fires. Tree loss in Brazil jumped 25 per cent in 2020, and its total of 1.7 million hectares was three times larger than the second-biggest contributor, the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The 2020 results have relative bright spots. Indonesia continued its now four-year run of decreasing its forest loss rate. The government stepped up prevention and enforcement activity after terrible fires in 2015. Malaysia, which has lost a fifth of its tree cover in the past two decades, has also seen a declining rate of loss since 2015. – Bloomberg

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