Trees are being cut down globally, a process known as deforestation when forests are permanently converted to another land use, or logging when trees are harvested for wood products. This widespread removal is a complex issue driven by various human activities. Its scale has significant implications across environments worldwide, stemming from diverse economic and societal pressures.
Agricultural Expansion
Agricultural land expansion is a primary driver of global tree loss. The demand for products like beef and various crops necessitates clearing forests for pastures and farmlands. This is particularly evident in tropical regions, home to much of the world’s remaining dense forests.
Cattle ranching significantly contributes to deforestation, especially in the Amazon, accounting for a large majority of forest conversion. Beef production is responsible for at least 41% of global deforestation, about 2.1 million hectares annually. This often involves “slash-and-burn” techniques, which can lead to uncontrolled fires.
Beyond livestock, commodity crops also drive forest clearing. Soy, palm oil, and coffee are key agricultural products causing substantial deforestation. While much soy is for animal feed, its expansion directly converts forest land and can indirectly displace cattle ranching into new forest areas. Cropland expansion contributes nearly 50% of global forest loss, and livestock grazing around 38.5%.
Timber and Wood Products
Global demand for timber and wood products is another major factor in tree removal. Wood serves many purposes, from construction materials and furniture to packaging and pulp for paper production. This demand fuels logging operations worldwide.
The pulp and paper industry utilizes a substantial portion of the global wood harvest, with about 42% used for paper. Annual paper production reaches approximately 405 million tonnes, consuming 13% to 15% of total wood. This leads to considerable forest conversion, particularly in regions like Indonesia where pulp plantations replace natural forests.
Global timber demand is projected to increase significantly, potentially quadrupling by 2050 due to economic and population growth. This rising demand drives both legal and illegal logging. Wood is also widely used as fuel, including firewood and charcoal, especially in developing regions where it constitutes about half of the wood removed from forests globally.
Urban Development and Infrastructure
Growing human populations and economies require more space, leading to forest clearing for urban development and infrastructure. As cities expand, forests are converted into residential, commercial, and industrial sites. This process, known as urban sprawl, directly removes tree cover.
The construction of roads, highways, dams, and power lines requires extensive land clearing. Roads not only directly remove trees but also open up previously inaccessible forest areas, facilitating further exploitation by loggers, miners, and land speculators. This fragmentation of habitats can accelerate forest loss and alter forest conditions. Large infrastructure projects often necessitate the conversion of significant forest tracts, impacting local ecosystems.
Resource Extraction
The extraction of natural resources, particularly minerals and fossil fuels, contributes to deforestation by requiring land clearing for mining operations and associated infrastructure. This includes removing forests to access underground deposits and build facilities for processing and transporting extracted materials. Mining activities can lead to significant localized forest loss.
Mining for precious metals like gold and industrial minerals such as coal is a notable driver of deforestation. From 2001 to 2020, mining and related activities caused the loss of nearly 1.4 million hectares of tree cover globally. While this is a smaller percentage of overall global tree cover loss compared to agriculture, its regional impacts can be severe.
Direct forest loss occurs within mining sites, but indirect deforestation also results from infrastructure development, such as roads and energy facilities, supporting mining operations. Expanding mining sites can also lead to the growth of nearby settlements, further impacting surrounding forests. Tropical rainforests are particularly affected, with a disproportionately high percentage of mining sites located within them.