Geographical Journal, 166(1), 2-13. 432). This is measured in hectares, which is equivalent to 10,000 m. More than 7 million hectares of forest, or 3.5 billion to 7 billion trees, are cut down every year because of deforestation. By Georgina Rannard. Americans cut down 15,094,678 Christmas trees in 2017, according to the most recent year of data from the U.S. Agriculture Department. On balance, it would still have a positive impact on the size of global forests; its net contribution would be increasing forest area by 25,000 hectares.32 However, this country might still be causing more damage than this for a couple of reasons. 2020. 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. People cut down 15 billion trees each year and the global tree count has fallen by 46% since the beginning of human civilization. The Earth System (Vol. Imagine over 100 large harvesters working non-stop. 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. Over half of the worlds species reside in tropical forests.24 Endemic species are those which only naturally occur in a single country. Absolute estimates of forest cover from other sources may differ for this reason. It was a net importer. Tropical forests are often more productive than temperate forests, meaning they store more carbon. Growing all those trees requires about 19.7 square miles of land. Why? How many trees are chopped down for Christmas? Since 2016, an average of 28 million hectares have been cut down every year. Countries which lie above the grey line such as the United States, Finland, China restore more forest each year domestically than they import from elsewhere. 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. How many trees are cut down each year in the Amazon rainforest? Lets take an example. Thats a lot of trees! In the figure we see visual examples from the study of forest loss classification by Philip Curtis et al. Data on net forest change, afforestation and deforestation is sourced from the UN Food and Agriculture Organizations Forest Resources Assessment. They are smaller, and more temporary. From the chart we see that this was driven by the continued expansion of land for agriculture. What we know and dont know about Earths missing biodiversity. By Georgina Rannard. Carbon emissions from deforestation: are they driven by domestic demand or international trade? Deforesting the earth: from prehistory to global crisis. How Many Trees are Cut down for Paper Each Year . How Many Trees are Cut down for Paper Each Year . Centuries ago it was mainly temperate regions that were driving global deforestation [we take a look at this longer history of deforestation in a related article]. Thats 6 billion hectares. Web3.5 billion to 7 billion trees are cut down per year. Healthy communities: Tree-filled neighborhoods lower levels of domestic violence and are safer and more sociable. All other material, including 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. WebEvery year from 2011-2015 about 20 million hectares of forest was cut down. Global deforestation reached its peak in the 1980s. This might paint a bleak picture for the future of the worlds forests: the United Nations projects that the global population will continue to grow, reaching 10.8 billion by 2100. Global Forest Resources Assessment 2020 Key findings. Since year-to-year changes in forest cover can be volatile, the UN FAO provide this annual data averaged over five-year periods. That means that each year, one percent of all trees are being destroyed. Before we look at trends in deforestation across the world specifically, its useful to understand the net change in forest cover. Science, 349(6250), 827-832. The world has lost one-third of its forest an area twice the size of the United States. Thats equivalent to the area of South Africa. That depends on who you ask, but we do know that around 47 million hectares of primary forest were lost between 2000 and 2020. 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. This is because the latter only captures deforestation the replacement of forest with another land use (such as cropland). Which countries are gaining, and which are losing forest? Some interesting facts state that every second, 1.5 acres of wood are cut down, 95% of the worlds deforestation occurs in the tropics [we look at this breakdown again later]. 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. Hosonuma, N., Herold, M., De Sy, V., De Fries, R. S., Brockhaus, M., Verchot, L., & Romijn, E. (2012). https://doi.org/10.4060/ca8753en. Countries below the line such as the UK and Germany are not growing forests fast enough to offset the deforestation theyre creating elsewhere. Since 1961, the amount of land we use for agriculture increased by only 7%. As mentioned above, about 15 billion trees are cut down each year. Agricultural and urban land: The UN FAO Statistical database provides data on global agricultural and urban land from 1961 onwards. The carbon footprint of diets across the EU vary from country-to-country, and estimates vary depending on how much land use change is factored into these figures. Deforestation is the complete removal of trees for the conversion of forest to another land use such as agriculture, mining, or towns and cities. Tropical forests and the changing earth system. WebThe UN FAO estimate that 10 million hectares of forest were cut down each year. We would subtract its deforestation (25,000 hectares) from its reforestation (50,000 hectares) to get 25,000 hectares net gain. (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. And, we might place more value on preserving primary, native forests that havent yet been deforested over regrowing forests that have lost their previous ecosystems. Forest loss or tree loss captures two fundamental impacts on forest cover: deforestation and forest degradation. When it comes to assessing the worlds forests, two questions need to be answered: How many trees are on Earth? and. Our World in Data is free and accessible for everyone. In a related article we look in much more detail at what agricultural products, and which countries are driving this. 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). Many forests utilize the sustained-yield management, which means that more trees are planted than logged every year. Lets now focus on the consumers of products driving deforestation. 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. A study published on September 2, 2015 in the journal Nature suggests these answers: 3 trillion and 15.3 billion. Tropical forests are home to some of the richest and most diverse ecosystems on the planet. Deforestation in Africa is mainly driven by local populations and markets; only 9% of its emissions are exported. And its not just in forests eitherits also happening on farms, in cities, and on private property. An assessment of deforestation and forest degradation drivers in developing countries. And to identify where deforestation is occurring; perhaps as important, show where forest loss is not deforestation. At the beginning of this phase, the forest area is at its lowest point. The global population at this time was small and growing very slowly there were fewer than 50 million people in the world. At this stage, countries are still losing forest each year but at a lower rate than before. Decisionmakers could give as much of our attention to European logging as to destruction of the Amazon. Cuaresma, J. C., Danylo, O., Fritz, S., McCallum, I., Obersteiner, M., See, L., & Walsh, B. By the mid-18th century, only 4% of the country was forested. 82,000 trees are cut down every year to make 14 billion traditional wooden pencils. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 27(9), 501-510. How many trees are cut down each year? Forests still cover about 30 percent of the worlds land area, but they are disappearing at an alarming rate. 71% of this is driven by demand in domestic markets, and the remaining 29% for the production of products that are traded. 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. For example, Ellis et al. Rudel, T. K. (1998). How many trees does IKEA cut down a England is similar: in the late 11th century, 15% of the country was forested, and over the following centuries two-thirds were cut down. Humans have already destroyed around 46% of the trees on Earth. The first step in doing this is for rich countries to monitor their deforestation impacts overseas more closely. The Asia-Pacific region predominantly Indonesia and Malaysia export a higher share: 44%. 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. Thats an area 1.5-times the size of the United States. In the chart we see how the cover of the earths surface has changed over the past 10,000 years. 71% of deforestation is for domestic production. 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. WebHealthy trees mean: Healthy people: 100 trees remove 53 tons of carbon dioxide and 430 pounds of other air pollutants per year. One option is to adopt stricter guidelines on what suppliers to source from, and implementing zero-deforestation policies that stop the trade of goods that have been produced on deforested land. When we cut down primary rainforest we are transforming this ecosystem forever. For example, the US imported 64,000 hectares of deforested land, but increased its domestic forest area by 275,000 hectares. The researchs results are When we treat these impacts equally we make it difficult to prioritize our efforts in the fight against deforestation. On the x-axis we have imported deforestation. The amount of land used for agriculture land to grow crops as well as grazing land for livestock was expanding. In 2012 the mid-year of this period global emissions from fossil fuels, industry and land use change was 40.2 billion tonnes. 95% of global deforestation occurs in the tropics. But it was then that England reached its transition point and since then, forests have doubled in size. A new study published in Nature estimates the planet has 3.04 trillion trees. As mentioned above, about 15 billion trees are cut down each year. Ellis, E. C., Beusen, A. H., & Goldewijk, K. K. (2020). The research says 15.3 billion trees are chopped down every year. How many trees are cut down each year?. The number of trees cut down in the Brazilian Amazon in January far exceeded deforestation for the same month last year, according to government satellite data. We need more fuelwood to cook, more houses to live in, and importantly, more food to eat. Since then, deforestation rates have steadily declined, to 78 million hectares in the 1990s; 52 million in the early 2000s; and 47 million in the last decade. As mentioned above, about 15 billion trees are cut down each year. The research says 15.3 billion trees are chopped down every year. theyre driving deforestation elsewhere; whilst many subtropical countries are partly cutting down trees to meet this demand from rich countries. More than 7 million hectares of forest, or 3.5 billion to 7 billion trees, are cut down every year because of deforestation. 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. Data on the annual change in domestic forests is sourced from the UN FAOs Forest Resources Assessment. Humans have been cutting down trees for millennia. Thats an area the size of the United Kingdom. Notarnicola et al. But, understanding the role of deforestation in the products we buy is important. 38. Forests still cover about 30 percent of the worlds land area, but they are disappearing at an alarming rate. The change is permanent. Most of our future deforestation is going to come from countries in the pre- or early-transition phase. But not all of it is to produce products for local markets. Then things started to speed up. Environmental Research Letters, 7(4), 044009. Forest transition theory and the reforesting of Scotland. In the map we see their assessment of each countrys stage in the transition. But urban land accounts for just 1% of global habitable land. Stage 3 The Late Transition phase is when deforestation rates start to slow down again. How many trees are cut down each year?. International trade is important for socioeconomic development. Forest loss measures the net change in forest cover: the loss in forests due to deforestation plus any expansion of forest through afforestation.6. Then things started to speed up. Mapping tree density at a global scale. There is some bad news, though: that number is likely to increase by 20% by 2023. 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 chart we see how emissions from tropical deforestation are distributed through international supply chains. (2012).Hosonuma, N., Herold, M., De Sy, V., De Fries, R. S., Brockhaus, M., Verchot, L., & Romijn, E. (2012). All of our charts can be embedded in any site. How Many Acres of Trees Are Cut Down Each Year? Even with the most basic of lifestyles compared to todays standards, the per capita footprint of our ancestors would have been large. Increasing human dominance of tropical forests. I have reconstructed long-term data using various studies which Ive documented here. 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. How many trees have been cut down? Some interesting facts state that every second, 1.5 acres of wood are cut down, Forestry production and wildfires usually result in forest degradation the forest experiences short-term disturbance but if left alone is likely to regrow. This rapid swapping of green for gray is harmful to the people living in these spaces, and it sets cities up for long-term environmental decline, according to the scientists. There is little forest left. What if this deforestation is being driven by consumers elsewhere? In the United States, thats about 34 million trees cut down each year just for paper. Data from 1990 onwards is sourced from the UNs 2020 Global Forest Resources Assessment 2020.References:Williams, M. (2003). 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. Globally we deforest around ten million hectares of forest every year.11 Thats an area the size of Portugal every year. Thats like losing an area the size of Portugal every two years. 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.) As to the number of trees this represents, its impossible to get an accurate count. International trade plays an important role in this growth, and may allow farmers to see the yield gains they need to produce more food using less land. But they wanted to contribute to a more informed discussion about where to focus forest conservation efforts by understanding why forests were being lost. From the 1920s through to the 1980s, decadal losses quadrupled to almost 120 million hectares. Thats around half the size of Germany. 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. (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). What activities are driving this? Increasing human dominance of tropical forests. How Many Acres of Trees Are Cut Down Each Year? It would be good if there was data available that would capture these additional aspects. The amount of land per person that was needed to produce enough food was not small in fact, it was much larger than today. Most traded emissions are embedded in soy and palm oil exports to China and India; and beef, soy and palm oil exports to Europe. [4] Forests cover 4.06 billion hectares (just less than 31%) of Many countries have not only ended deforestation, but actually achieved substantial reforestation. Scientific Reports, 7, 40678. 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. But, as countries continue to get richer this demand slows. 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. Nature Sustainability, 1-9. How Many Trees are Cut down for Paper Each Year . You see that of the 14.9 billion hectares of land on the planet, only 71% of it is habitable the other 29% is either covered by ice and glaciers, or is barren land such as deserts, salt flats, or dunes. Since 2016, an average of 28 million hectares have been cut down every year. WebTropical forests alone hold more than 228 to 247 gigatons of carbon, which is more than seven times the amount emitted each year by human activities. They are also richer sites of biodiversity. Lewis, S. L., Edwards, D. P., & Galbraith, D. (2015). Imagine over 100 large harvesters working non-stop. 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. According to CNN, each year over 1,000 plants and animal species go extinct due to deforestation and subsequent habitat loss. are added every year. 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