Deforestation By The Numbers [Statistics For 2021]

Emily Moore https://www.treetriage.com 2m 382 #deforestation

The views of this article are the perspective of the author and may not be reflective of Confessions of the Professions.

In Honor Of National Tree Day, Plant A Tree Today (August 1st)

Did you know that if we continue destroying forests at the rate we are doing today, Earth’s rainforests will disappear in the next 100 years? Did you also know that in 1990, forests occupied 31.6% of Earth’s land area and in 2016, the proportion of land occupied by forests was about 1% lower at 30.7%?

From the Amazon forest which is still on fire, by the way, to the colossus destruction of the Australian outback which likely can never recover its loss of nearly a billion wildlife animals, to the constant fires in the Western United States, forest cover is decreasing faster than most forests are able to recover, with and without human help, the issue stems far deeper than just scratching the surface of climate change which is very involved, but the mass extinction of species and ecosystems has far-reaching consequences that have yet to be seen. Without human intervention, prevention, and restoration projects, any hope for the future is likely to be devastating for humanity.

This article attempts to tell the story of deforestation using the latest statistics. We start by presenting some quick statistics that show how bad the problem of deforestation is. Then we focus on the impact of deforestation on global warming, biodiversity, and livelihoods. Finally, we talk about what we can each do to reverse the damage caused by deforestation. We also quote 28 different sources in the article — it’s quite authoritative.

No matter how small your efforts, every human alive can help with efforts to prevent deforestation including:

• Plant a tree
  • If each person on Earth planted a tree per year, we would have an extra 7.5 billion more trees every year
• Use less paper because over 40% of all timber is used for making different forms of paper
• Reduce demand for paper by recycling
• Eat less meat as around 80% of forests cleared in the Amazon are cleared to make way for cattle ranching.
• Support companies that can prove that they use sustainable sources for their wood products
• Support or help create community-based projects including gardens and natural forest preserves
• Write to your local congressmen and congresswomen about your concerns companies cutting down trees and destroying the environment

For in-depth statistics on 2021 Deforestation, check out: https://www.treetriage.com/tree-removal/deforestation/

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