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Deforestation is defined as the conversion of forest to other land uses (regardless of whether it is human-induced). [14] Deforestation and forest area net change are not the same: the latter is the sum of all forest losses (deforestation) and all forest gains (forest expansion) in a given period. Net change, therefore, can be positive or ...
Land use change, especially in the form of deforestation, is the second largest source of carbon dioxide emissions from human activities, after the burning of fossil fuels. [4] [5] Greenhouse gases are emitted from deforestation during the burning of forest biomass and decomposition of remaining plant material and soil carbon.
Each of these biomes faces various threats of deforestation, urban development, [2] soil compaction, species extinction, unmanaged recreational use, invasive species, or any combination of these threats. But there are many techniques that can be implemented for forest conservation efforts. [3]
Some human activities that cause damage (either directly or indirectly) to the environment on a global scale include population growth, [11] [12] [13] neoliberal economic policies [14] [15] [16] and rapid economic growth, [17] overconsumption, overexploitation, pollution, and deforestation.
Satellite photograph of deforestation in Bolivia.Originally dry tropical forest, the land is being cleared for soybean cultivation. [5]Biodiversity hotspots are chiefly tropical regions that feature high concentrations of endemic species and, when all hotspots are combined, may contain over half of the world's terrestrial species. [6]
Deforestation is the main land use change contributor to global warming, [62] Between 1750 and 2007, about one-third of anthropogenic CO 2 emissions were from changes in land use - primarily from the decline in forest area and the growth in agricultural land. [63] primarily deforestation.
Drivers of deforestation and forest degradation by region, 2000–2010, from the Food and Agriculture Organization publication The State of the World's Forests 2020. Forests, biodiversity and people – In brief [3] Deforestation is much worse than forest degradation, but it is clear and visible.
Deforestation in the Maranhão state, Brazil, in July 2016. The Amazon rainforest, spanning an area of 3,000,000 km 2 (1,200,000 sq mi), is the world's largest rainforest. It encompasses the largest and most biodiverse tropical rainforest on the planet, representing over half of all rainforests.