In 2021, leaders from over 100 countries and territories – representing the vast majority of the world’s forests – pledged to stop and reverse forest loss by 2030.
However, a recently released annual assessment found global deforestation to have actually increased by four percent last year, and the world remains well off track to meet the 2030 commitment.
“That 2030 goal is not just nice to have, it’s essential for maintaining a livable climate for humanity,” warned Erin Matson, a lead author of the Forest Declaration Assessment.
Forests are not only key habitats for animal life, but serve as important regulators of the global climate and carbon sponges that suck in the emissions human activity belches out.
Unfortunately, deforestation last year was over 20 percent higher than it should have been to meet the leaders’ pledge, with 6.6 million hectares of forest lost, much of it primary forest in tropical regions.
The assessment, overseen by more than two dozen environmental groups and research organizations, also warns that forest degradation, which refers to a wide range of harms that affect a forest’s overall health, including wildfires and biodiversity loss, remains a huge problem.
On the bright side, the assessment was not universally gloomy, with about 50 countries deemed on course to end deforestation. In particular, Brazil, Indonesia, and Malaysia saw dramatic reductions in forest loss.
However, those gains are at risk, the report warns.
It called for stronger global action, including more money to protect forests, and the end of subsidies to sectors like agriculture that drive deforestation.
“The world is failing forests with devastating consequences on a global scale,” said Fran Price, WWF’s global forest lead.
Deforestation is an important issue, but whenever countries meet for climate talks, it has taken a backseat to discussions on renewable energy and the future of fossil fuels. Price wants to see the forest higher on the agenda, which may take greater effort from those lobbying for its protection.
Here in the Philippines, where do our forests rank among our priorities? Will we be leaving enough for future generations to enjoy, or should they prepare to read about our country’s forests only in history and science books?*
