Global Deforestation Research Articles

Global land use changes are four times greater than previously estimated

Quantifying the dynamics of land use change is critical in tackling global societal challenges such as food security, climate change, and biodiversity loss. Here we analyse the dynamics of global land use change at an unprecedented spatial resolution by combining multiple open data streams (remote sensing, reconstructions and statistics) to create the HIstoric Land Dynamics Assessment + (HILDA +). We estimate that land use change has affected almost a third (32%) of the global land area in just six decades (1960-2019) and, thus, is around four times greater in extent than previously estimated from long-term land change assessments. We also identify geographically diverging land use change processes, with afforestation and cropland abandonment in the Global North and deforestation and agricultural expansion in the South. Here, we show that observed phases of accelerating (~1960–2005) and decelerating (2006–2019) land use change can be explained by the effects of global trade on agricultural production.

Deforestation and Habitat Loss: Human Causes, Consequences and Possible Solutions

Deforestation leads to habitat loss while preservation and conservation of the natural forest increase biological diversity. Multiple factors have been reported to be responsible for deforestation and habitat loss, which could either be of human or natural origin.Natural causes of deforestation could be as a result of forest fires, droughts, exotic animals, floods, overpopulation of foreign animals and climate change. That notwithstanding, human activities are among the principal causes of global deforestation and habitat loss with agricultural expansion, cattle breeding, timber extraction, mining,oil extraction, dam construction and infrastructure development as some examples of these human influences. This study identifies agricultural activities and urbanization as the chief causes of human induced deforestation and habitat loss on a large scale. The simple and more practicable approach to curb the already alarming effects of deforestation and habitat loss is through environmental education of everyone still surviving on our planet.Environmental education is the key to reversing continuous and deliberate human actions through the protection of every natural forest and afforestation where necessary.

Local forest proportion and proximity to large forest patches are important for native mammal conservation in Dry Chaco agroecosystems

AbstractHabitat loss is a significant threat to biodiversity worldwide, and the Argentine Dry Chaco is one of the most active global deforestation hotspots. Medium‐large mammals are especially vulnerable to land‐cover change, and in the Dry Chaco, they are subjected to the combined effect of habitat loss and hunting. In agroecosystems, blocks of natural habitat can contribute to maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem functionality, and it is necessary to identify human‐modified landscape configurations that are compatible with wildlife conservation. Through camera‐trapping in five agroecosystems of the Argentine Dry Chaco, we assessed the role of local‐scale forest proportion and distance to large forest patches on medium‐large mammal richness and frequency of records. Forest proportion positively influenced medium‐large mammal estimated richness, and large‐bodied mammals were more frequent in stations near large forest blocks and in stations with higher forest proportion when larger forest blocks were distant. Small‐medium sized generalist carnivores were more frequent in stations with lower forest proportion. Forest remnants and the presence of large forest patches are thus important for medium‐large mammals in the region and more specifically for the conservation of larger‐bodied species. Forest loss may also facilitate the increase of mesopredator populations, with potential consequences on the dynamics of ecosystems and human‐wildlife interactions. For agroecosystems to contribute to the conservation of mammals in the Dry Chaco, the preservation or restoration of forest remnants and of large extensions of forests should be incorporated in regional and local land‐use planning.

Mapping the deforestation footprint of nations reveals growing threat to tropical forests.

Deforestation, a significant threat to biodiversity, is accelerated by global demand for commodities. Although prior literature has linked deforestation to global supply chains, here we provide a fine-scale representation of spatial patterns of deforestation associated with international trade. Using remote sensing data and a multi-region input-output model, we quantify and map the spatiotemporal changes in global deforestation footprints over 15 years (2001-2015) at a 30-m resolution. We find that, while many developed countries, China and India have obtained net forest gains domestically, they have also increased the deforestation embodied in their imports, of which tropical forests are the most threatened biome. Consumption patterns of G7 countries drive an average loss of 3.9 trees per person per year. Some of the hotspots of deforestation embodied in international trade are also biodiversity hotspots, such as in Southeast Asia, Madagascar, Liberia, Central America and the Amazonian rainforest. Our results emphasize the need to reform zero-deforestation policies through strong transnational efforts and by improving supply chain transparency, public-private engagement and financial support for the tropics.

Outbreaks of Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases Are Associated With Changes in Forest Cover and Oil Palm Expansion at Global Scale.

Deforestation is a major cause of biodiversity loss with a negative impact on human health. This study explores at global scale whether the loss and gain of forest cover and the rise of oil palm plantations can promote outbreaks of vector-borne and zoonotic diseases. Taking into account the human population growth, we find that the increases in outbreaks of zoonotic and vector-borne diseases from 1990 to 2016 are linked with deforestation, mostly in tropical countries, and with reforestation, mostly in temperate countries. We also find that outbreaks of vector-borne diseases are associated with the increase in areas of palm oil plantations. Our study gives new support for a link between global deforestation and outbreaks of zoonotic and vector-borne diseases as well as evidences that reforestation and plantations may also contribute to epidemics of infectious diseases. The results are discussed in light of the importance of forests for biodiversity, livelihoods and human health and the need to urgently build an international governance framework to ensure the preservation of forests and the ecosystem services they provide, including the regulation of diseases. We develop recommendations to scientists, public health officers and policymakers who should reconcile the need to preserve biodiversity while taking into account the health risks posed by lack or mismanagement of forests.

Increasing diversity to save biodiversity: Rising to the challenge and supporting Indonesian women in conservation

AbstractIndonesia is one of the most biodiverse countries in the world yet suffers from the highest global deforestation rate. Having more diverse voices in conservation science contributing innovative ideas and solutions could benefit the country's biodiversity. However, some aspects of conservation work in Indonesia remain male‐dominated, particularly fieldwork. Understanding motivations and challenges for women pursuing a conservation career is critical to diversifying the workforce. We present some of the motivations and challenges of women conservation scientists attending a field skills and networking workshop in Sumatra, Indonesia, in September 2019. We conducted semistructured surveys in a preliminary study with female conservation scientists at the beginning of their careers and those with established careers of at least 3 years. Early‐career women predominantly cited a love of nature as their main motivator and cultural‐based gender norms as their primary challenge. Established career women discussed slowly improving gender norms and the importance of mentors throughout their careers. Without active engagement in career training and support over the long‐term for underrepresented groups in conservation, we could lose out on novel perspectives that could help solve the world's most daunting ecological problems.

Characterizing forest disturbances across the Argentine Dry Chaco based on Landsat time series

Forest loss in the tropics affects large areas, but whereas full forest conversions are routinely assessed, forest degradation patters remain often unclear. This is particularly so for the world’s tropical dry forests, where remote sensing of forest disturbances is challenging due to high canopy complexity, strong phenology and climate variability, and diverse degradation drivers. Here, we used the full depth of the Landsat archive and devised an approach to detect disturbances related to forest degradation across the entire Argentine Dry Chaco (about 489,000 km2) over a 30-year timespan. We used annual time series of different spectral indices, summarized for three seasonal windows, and applied LandTrendr to temporally segment each time series. The resulting pixel-level forest disturbance metrics then served as input for a Random Forests classification which we used to produce an area-wide disturbance map, and associated yearly area estimates of disturbed forest. Finally, we evaluated disturbance trends in relation to climate and soil conditions. Our best model produced a disturbance map with an overall accuracy of 79%, with a balanced error distribution. A total of 8% (24,877 ± 860 km2) of the remaining forest in the Argentine Dry Chaco have been affected by forest disturbances between 1990 and 2017. Diverse spatial patterns of forest disturbances indicate a variety of agents driving disturbances. We also found the disturbed area to vary strongly between years, with larger areas being disturbed during drought years. Our approach shows that it is possible to robustly map forest disturbances in tropical dry forests using Landsat time series, and demonstrates the value of ensemble approaches to capture spectrally-complex and heterogeneous land-change processes. For the Chaco, a global deforestation hotspot, our analyses provide the first Landsat-based assessment of forest disturbance in remaining forests, highlighting the need to better consider such disturbances in assessments of carbon budgets and biodiversity change.

Long term impacts of transitions in charcoal production systems in tropical biomes

Mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions through transitions to biomass-based renewable energy may result in higher land needs, affecting ecosystem services and livelihoods. Charcoal is a biomass-based renewable energy that provides energy for hundreds of millions of households worldwide and generates income for 40 million people. However, it currently causes up to 7% of the global deforestation rate. In the absence of affordable alternative fuels, it is necessary to identify conditions that foster sustainable charcoal production. In this study, we (a) develop a stylized model that simulates feedbacks between forest biomass and charcoal production, and (b) use the model to examine the effects of interventions that foster sustainable charcoal systems through transitions to communal management or private systems, increases in carbonization efficiency and charcoal demand reductions. Our model simulations suggest that at low demand, a transition is unnecessary. At intermediate to high demands, interventions that increase carbonization efficiency and/or reduce demand should be combined with transitions to communal management (at intermediate forest biomass levels) or private systems (at low forest biomass levels) to ensure long-term sustainability of charcoal systems and avoid collapse within 100 years. These results highlight multiple pathways for sustainable charcoal production systems tailored to meet supply and demand. All pathways are feasible across tropical biomes and could foster the simultaneous continuation of forests and charcoal production in the near future.

Land privatization and deforestation in a commodity production frontier

AbstractConservation policies often promote land privatization to reduce incentives for deforestation. However, empirical evidence on the relationship between land‐tenure form and forest conservation outcomes is inconclusive. We combined key informant mapping and geospatial analyses to test the association between the area under tenure and the area deforested by extra‐local private and local nonprivate agents in the Argentine Dry Chaco over four decades (1976–2016). The study area is a typical commodity production frontier within a global deforestation hotspot. We found a strong spatial and temporal coupling between the area under tenure and the area deforested by extra‐local private agents from 1987 to 2006, when a 59% increase in the former was accompanied by a 508% increase in the latter. Local private agents maintained high levels of forest cover, similarly to local nonprivate agents. Our findings have implications for the adaptive design of the Forest Law in the Argentine Dry Chaco.

Eighty-six EU policy options for reducing imported deforestation

Eighty-six EU policy options for reducing imported deforestation

Assessing Drivers of Deforestation and Forest Degradation in PirPanjal Region of Kashmir Himalayas using Geospatial Approach

Global deforestation is a major contributor of CO 2 emission despite registering slowdown in the past decade. Regional forest cover change, a cause of climatic concern is attributed to increasing anthropogenic pressure on forests. Focus on drivers of forest cover change has become inevitable due to global emphasis on role of socio-economic framework in conserving forests. Keeping in view, the study was aimed to assess deforestation and forest degradation and identify drivers of change in PirPanjal region of Western Himalaya using Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) data of 2003 and 2013. Satellite data was delineated into different categories of forest cover namely closed forest, open forest, forest scrub, grasslands and non-forest using on-screen visual interpretation. Mapping was supplemented with extensive field validation points for accuracy assessment. Forest cover change map and change matrix were generated to assess rates of deforestation. Drivers of change were assessed through a detailed semi-structured interview schedule. The results revealed a gross annual deforestation of -0.46% and a net annual deforestation of -0.45%. Illicit felling, poverty and lack of employment were identified to be the top drivers of deforestation and forest degradation while as plantation and afforestation reassured forest growth at some places. There is a need to prioritize actions for restoration and conservation of some areas based on identified drivers to reverse the process of deforestation and forest degradation. The locations indicating negative change can be strategized under REDD+ mechanism for reclamation of forests with integrated social benefits.

Pulp and Paper Making Characteristics of Fibers from Plantation-grown Oxythenantera Abyssinica and Beema Bamboo (A Tissue Cultured Clone from Bambusa Balcooa)

ABSTRACT The alarming global deforestation rate has great impacts on the output of the Pulp and paper Industry since wood is the principal papermaking fiber material. Although, generally, bamboo is an alternative cellulolytic fiber source, the species and culm age have great effects on its papermaking potential. Based on the methods by the International Association of Wood Anatomists (IAWA), this work assessed the characteristics of fibers from the axial culm sections of six-month plantation-grown Oxythenantera abyssinica and Beema bamboo (which was cloned from Bambusa balcoaa) for paper production. The lengths of the fibers ranged from 1.89 to 2.39 mm while the diameters were 0.025–0.031 mm. The fiber lumen diameter and wall thickness were 0.014–0.018 mm and 0.004–0.006 mm, respectively. Fibers from the species had their runkle ratios below 1, slenderness ratios above 70 and flexibility ratios above 50. These characteristics compare well with the recommendations for fibers often used for the production of packaging, writing and printing papers. Establishment of plantations of Beema bamboo and O. abyssinica is encouraged as they will serve as good raw material base for the paper industry within six months of planting. Additionally, their planting will contribute to meeting Sustainable Development Goals 1 and 13.

Adoption of Clay Charcoal Briquetting to Curb Deforestation and the Impacts of Covid-19 Pandemic in Rural Areas, Kenya

Wood fuel is the principal source of energy in Kenya and contributes to more than 17% of the global deforestation. Saving on the amount of charcoal used at home will not only help save on cost that can be used to offset the economic burden caused by the impacts of COVID-19 pandemic but also control deforestation. This will foster the realization of more than10% tree cover in Kenya by 2022 as per the presidential directive of 2019, Kenya Vision 2030 and the Constitution of Kenya 2010. This study aimed at promoting this goal by encouraging adoption of charcoal briquettes made from clay soil as a binder, charcoal dust and charcoal pellets as raw materials and ignited by pure charcoal (PC) to produce energy to form Clay Charcoal Blend Briquettes (CCBB). The study compared the amount of energy consumed by a household of five people using CCBB and PC. The results were: adoption of CCBB reduced the amount of charcoal used by 1.025kg per day, 21.325kg per week, 92.25kg per month and 1,122.375kg per year. This would save hundreds of trees from destruction. Additionally, using CCBB saved a household Ksh.45 (0.41USD) a day, Ksh. 945 (8.59 USD) a week, Ksh. 4,050 (36.82 USD) a month and Ksh. 49,275 (447.95 USD) a year as compared to using PC. The study therefore encouraged for adoption of CCBB concept.

Cooperative norms and global deforestation

ABSTRACT This study aims to explore the role of cooperative norms and discount factors in global deforestation. Previous studies have revealed that these preferences lead to the better management of common-pool resources. However, since these case studies focus on small geographical areas, external validity remains an important issue. By using high-resolution satellite data and a unified measure of cooperative norms and discount factors, this study demonstrates that higher levels of cooperative norms are associated with a lower level of deforestation across the world, whereas no significant association is found between discount factors and deforestation.

Global climate response to idealized deforestation in CMIP6 models

Abstract. Changes in forest cover have a strong effect on climate through the alteration of surface biogeophysical and biogeochemical properties that affect energy, water and carbon exchange with the atmosphere. To quantify biogeophysical and biogeochemical effects of deforestation in a consistent setup, nine Earth system models (ESMs) carried out an idealized experiment in the framework of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project, phase 6 (CMIP6). Starting from their pre-industrial state, models linearly replace 20×106 km2 of forest area in densely forested regions with grasslands over a period of 50 years followed by a stabilization period of 30 years. Most of the deforested area is in the tropics, with a secondary peak in the boreal region. The effect on global annual near-surface temperature ranges from no significant change to a cooling by 0.55 ∘C, with a multi-model mean of -0.22±0.21 ∘C. Five models simulate a temperature increase over deforested land in the tropics and a cooling over deforested boreal land. In these models, the latitude at which the temperature response changes sign ranges from 11 to 43∘ N, with a multi-model mean of 23∘ N. A multi-ensemble analysis reveals that the detection of near-surface temperature changes even under such a strong deforestation scenario may take decades and thus longer than current policy horizons. The observed changes emerge first in the centre of deforestation in tropical regions and propagate edges, indicating the influence of non-local effects. The biogeochemical effect of deforestation are land carbon losses of 259±80 PgC that emerge already within the first decade. Based on the transient climate response to cumulative emissions (TCRE) this would yield a warming by 0.46 ± 0.22 ∘C, suggesting a net warming effect of deforestation. Lastly, this study introduces the “forest sensitivity” (as a measure of climate or carbon change per fraction or area of deforestation), which has the potential to provide lookup tables for deforestation–climate emulators in the absence of strong non-local climate feedbacks. While there is general agreement across models in their response to deforestation in terms of change in global temperatures and land carbon pools, the underlying changes in energy and carbon fluxes diverge substantially across models and geographical regions. Future analyses of the global deforestation experiments could further explore the effect on changes in seasonality of the climate response as well as large-scale circulation changes to advance our understanding and quantification of deforestation effects in the ESM frameworks.

Predation on livestock and its influence on tolerance toward pumas in agroecosystems of the Argentine Dry Chaco

ABSTRACT As an apex predator, pumas (Puma concolor) frequently enter into conflict with humans because of predation on livestock. We analyzed the association between puma predation and human tolerance in six agroecosystems of the Argentine Dry Chaco, a global deforestation hotspot. Specifically, we addressed attitudes and behaviors of local social actors toward pumas, their association to reported livestock predation, and the incidence of livestock management and puma abundance on predation on livestock. Puma predation on livestock was considered an important cause of livestock loss. Attitudes toward pumas were negative, but were not strongly associated with predation. However, retaliatory hunting was more common among respondents who experienced livestock predation. Breeding goats and sheep and the lack of corrals increased livestock predation probability, which decreased with low puma abundance. Tolerance toward pumas is low in agroecosystems of this region, and further qualitative studies should address its likely hidden causes.

Spatial clustering using neighborhood for multispectral images

Spatial data mining discovers patterns and knowledge in spatial data. The geospatial data analysis plays a decisive role in framing essential policies related to the environment at the national as well as global level. It helps in the prediction of weather, studying the impact of climate change, the effect of global warming, forest fire, deforestation, and other causes of changes in nature. Clustering is a process of assigning similar objects to a group and dissimilar objects to different groups. We proposed a clustering algorithm, spatial clustering using neighborhood (SCN), in which similar neighboring pixels groups together to form a cluster. It is a two-step process: first, identification of clusters of similar neighboring pixels and second, merging of spatially separated similar clusters. Experiments with the implementation of the proposed approach have been carried out on three Landsat 5 thematic mapper images of Delhi, Chilika lake, and Kolkata region. In terms of normalized cluster quality parameters, SCN produced better clusters than other discussed algorithms in the literature.

Widespread and major losses in multiple ecosystem services as a result of agricultural expansion in the Argentine Chaco

Abstract Where agriculture expands into tropical and subtropical forests, social–ecological impacts are typically strong. However, where and how frontier development impacts on ecosystem functioning and services is often unclear, including which services trade‐off against agricultural production. This constitutes a major barrier towards planning for more sustainable outcomes in deforestation frontiers. Here we assessed spatiotemporal change in multiple ecosystem services in the Argentine Chaco, a global deforestation hotspot. We modelled and mapped five ecosystem functions (i.e. carbon storage in biomass, carbon storage in soil, erosion control, excess rainfall retention by vegetation and soil fertility) which together provide three ecosystem services (i.e. agricultural suitability, climate regulation and flood regulation) for 1985, 2000 and 2013. We then employed this information to identify and map: (a) main trade‐offs between ecosystem services and agricultural production, and (b) bundles of changes in ecosystem services through the use of Self‐Organizing Maps. Our results highlight that land‐use changes since 1985 have led to widespread and drastic declines in ecosystem functions and services across the Argentine Chaco. Mean losses of ecosystem services ranged between 6% and 10% for flood regulation, climate regulation and agricultural suitability. The largest losses occurred in the Dry Chaco subregion between 2000 and 2013. We find two main types of trade‐offs between regulating ecosystem services and agricultural production. Increases in crop and pasture production occurred along with large and moderate losses, respectively, in flood regulation and climate regulation over 20% of the region. Our mapping of bundles identified five common patterns of change in ecosystem services, delineating areas of stable or degrading ecosystem service supply. This provides a powerful template for adaptive spatial planning. Synthesis and applications. Using the Argentinean Chaco as an example, we demonstrate how combining fine‐scale land‐use maps with biophysical models provides deep insights into the spatiotemporal patterns of changes in ecosystem services, and their trade‐offs with agricultural production. The periodic updating of maps of trade‐offs and bundles of change in ecosystem services provides key inputs for the adaptive management of highly dynamic and threatened landscapes, such as those in tropical and subtropical deforestation frontiers.

Sustainable sourcing Healthy sweetness that respects nature

Sustainable sourcing <i>Healthy sweetness that respects nature</i>

Reducing deforestation through value chain interventions in countries emerging from conflict: The case of the Colombian cocoa sector

Sustainability commitments by private sector actors are emerging as interventions to help reduce global deforestation. Much attention is placed on the forest conservation impact of these interventions in areas where commodity production constitutes a main driver of deforestation. It is, however, less clearly understood what role they could play in areas where the production of commodities is not evidently leading to the loss of forest and how they could contribute to other objectives including sustainable rural development and peacebuilding. In this paper, we examine the potential of the cocoa sector in Colombia in achieving deforestation reduction and peacebuilding simultaneously, as aimed by the country's Cocoa, Forests and Peace Initiative. Results from correlations and spatially explicit analyses show that regardless of its widespread production across Colombia, in the past fifteen years cocoa has not been an important driver of deforestation. This suggests that efforts to end deforestation in the Colombian cocoa sector emerged following global trends, and not because of an evident link between cocoa production and deforestation. Furthermore, results from spatial clustering analyses highlight areas where different types of value chain interventions may be appropriate to parallel forest conservation and peacebuilding, while interviews with key actors in the cocoa sector provide clues as to how these interventions should be developed and implemented. Specifically, our results show that narratives around approaches to achieve zero deforestation from agricultural commodities should (1) be adjusted to local contexts, (2) incorporate location-specific development needs, (3) complement existing rural development efforts, (4) enhance collaboration among actors that operate both within and beyond the value chain, and (5) apply high-resolution data to assess deforestation-commodity relations and verify zero-deforestation commitments. These considerations are particularly relevant in contexts where commodity production is not evidently leading to deforestation, as in the case of cocoa production in Colombia.