| FAO publishes key findings of global forest resources assessment | |||
| (Wednesday, 14 April 2010) Written by Edward Lodenyo | |||
  Data collection for the Global Forest Resources Assessment is becoming more comprehensive and precise. New data and additional information on afforestation and on natural expansion of forests for the past 20 years has made it possible to estimate rates of deforestation and loss from natural causes more accurately. The new global estimate for 1990 to 2000 (close to 16 million ha per year) is higher than previously estimated (13 million ha), because it now also includes deforestation within countries that have had an overall net gain in forest area. A remote-sensing survey of forests, led by FAO, sampling some 13 500 sites over a period of 15 years, will provide even more accurate data on global and regional rates of deforestation by the end of 2011. World deforestation decreases, but remains alarming in many countries. World deforestation, mainly the conversion of tropical forests to agricultural land, has decreased over the past ten years but continues at an alarmingly high rate in many countries. South America and Africa had the highest net annual loss of forests in 2000-2010, with four and 3.4 million hectares respectively. Read more |
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