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The Independent
25-05-2025
- General
- The Independent
No more grandstanding: Deforestation pledges will burn in flames if we ignore inequality
In 2024, the majority of tropical forests didn't fall to the chainsaw; they burned. For the first time on record, wildfires became the primary cause of tropical forest loss, as global deforestation spiked to levels 'unlike anything we've seen in over 20 years of data,' said Elizabeth Goldman, co-director of Global Forest Watch. Wildfires destroyed 6.7 million hectares of tropical primary forest last year. That's roughly the size of Ireland. It was nearly double the previous year's total and the largest area of fire-related tropical forest loss ever recorded. This spike in fire-driven deforestation isn't just another grim statistic of a 1.5C world. It's the clearest sign yet that pledges made in global halls, without accounting for realities on the ground, are falling flat on their faces and can't save the world's forests. In 2021, Boris Johnson launched a landmark global forestry pledge in Glasgow to halt and reverse forest loss by 2030. Hailed then as a crucial step to protect the world's tropical forests, it now stands in bare-naked shame. Across the tropics, climate extremes turned forever-damp forests into tinderboxes, and from the Amazon to the Congo, 'illegal' ranchers and miners took advantage by lighting fires, clearing land, and exploiting government blind spots. In Brazil, the host of this year's climate summit, the scale of destruction last year is simply staggering. During what was the country's worst drought in 70 years, an area roughly three times the size of Scotland burned to dust. The dense, wet Amazon rainforests are unimaginably diverse, and rarely at risk of fire. However, according to monitoring platform MapBiomas, Brazil saw a 79 per cent increase in fire-related forest loss last year, and almost two-thirds of this was in the Amazon rainforest. Experts across the country agree that while the country's drought set the stage for last year's devastation, only a tiny percentage of fires were due to 'natural causes.' Instead, the more than 140 thousand fires set last year are thought to have largely been caused by organised crime networks that took root in the Amazon during the previous Jair Bolsonaro administration. This comes only a year after the Brazilian government rolled out a new plan to ramp up forestry enforcement, crack down on illegal ranchers, and stop deforestation in the Amazon by 2030. As national policies tightened, non-fire-related deforestation dropped by 30 per cent in a year. The fight to reverse Bolsonaro's blatant green light to cut down forests en masse had been successful. But the battlefront was about to shift, and ranchers turned to fire at such a scale that the current president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, called it 'climate terrorism'. In Colombia, we see a similar phenomenon. The arrival of the progressive Petro government in 2022 led to the biggest drop in primary forest loss in 20 years. But last year, that all turned around, and primary forest loss increased by nearly 50 per cent. After decades of civil conflict and militarised forest patrols, peace has proven hard to keep profitable in many of the country's poorest regions. Without sustainable livelihoods, illegal mining and coca cultivation have expanded to unprecedented levels. What is needed to stop deforestation in many of these regions isn't a new global pledge, but new jobs, and help to imagine what Joaquin Carrizosa, a Senior Advisor at WRI Colombia calls 'local, nature-based economies' But the report didn't just contain bad news. Indonesia and Malaysia were two of the few bright spots last year. In both countries, deforestation rates are dropping, as efforts to tackle poverty, restore degraded land and reduce wildfires have helped keep forests intact. However, with a change of government in Indonesia planning to clear an area of rainforest in Papua nearly as big as Belgium, to make way for sugarcane and rice, these priorities may be about to shift. But what these results make clear is that protecting the world's forests is far easier said than done. The pledge to end deforestation by 2030 is certainly not a lost cause, but achieving it isn't just about governments making grand announcements to protect forests. This is undeniably a critical first step, but in order to keep these forests intact long-term, you need to empower the people who live with and make their living from forests themselves. This undoubtedly includes indigenous peoples around the world, who continue to prove to be the best defence against illegal loggers. But it's one thing to stop a truck; it's another thing to stop miners with guns or a fire. What happens in these unregulated mines, out of sight, can be horrific. They need law enforcement to back them up. But it also needs to include these ranchers, miners, and poor people living across these regions, drawn into the trade. When I was 19, I spent weeks living in and around illegal gold miners in Guyana, trying to understand what drives them to the trade. I met some whom I genuinely was afraid of. But I also met others, former high school teachers and bus drivers, dedicated dads trying to send money back home to their families. These aren't people who were born to hate forests; they're just looking for better options. If the world is serious about meeting any of its climate and biodiversity goals, then 2024 must mark a turning point. We simply can't meet any of the IPCC 's liveable climate scenarios without tackling deforestation. We probably don't need any more global pledges. We've had plenty of those. The lessons learned this year need to be that instead of big global pledges, we need to work with those living in and around these incredible ecosystems and give them real opportunities to make a living protecting them. We don't need to compete dollar for dollar with criminal networks, but we do need to offer an alternative.
The Independent
22-05-2025
- Science
- The Independent
‘Global red alert': Wildfires drive record forest loss in 2024, alarming data reveals
Global forest loss surged to record levels in 2024, with wildfires destroying 6.7 million hectares of tropical primary forest – nearly double the previous year's – according to new satellite data. For the first time, fires, not agriculture, were the leading driver of tropical forest loss, according to data released by Global Forest Watch, as experts called it a 'global red alert'. The new figures, based on analysis by the University of Maryland 's GLAD Lab and published on the World Resources Institute 's Global Forest Watch platform, reveal the devastating toll of fire-fuelled deforestation on both the climate and vulnerable communities around the world. 'This level of forest loss is unlike anything we've seen in over 20 years of data,' said Elizabeth Goldman, co-director of Global Forest Watch. 'It's a global red alert – a collective call to action for every country, every business and every person who cares about a liveable planet. Our economies, our communities, our health – none of it can survive without forests.' The loss of tropical primary forests – vital ecosystems that store carbon and support biodiversity – amounted to an area nearly the size of Panama vanishing at a rate of 18 football fields per minute. Globally, fires emitted 4.1 gigatonnes of greenhouse gases, more than four times the emissions from all commercial air travel in 2023. It's a global red alert – a collective call to action for every country, every business and every person who cares about a liveable planet. Elizabeth Goldman, co-director of Global Forest Watch While wildfires are common in boreal regions, fire has historically been a secondary cause of tropical deforestation. In 2024, however, fires accounted for nearly half of all tropical primary forest loss – up from 20 per cent in previous years. The report attributes the shift to a combination of human activity, rising land pressure and extreme heat, worsened by El Niño and the continued impacts of the climate crisis. '2024 was the worst year on record for fire-driven forest loss, breaking the record set just last year,' said Peter Potapov, research professor at the University of Maryland and co-director of the GLAD Lab. 'If this trend continues, it could permanently transform critical natural areas and unleash large amounts of carbon, intensifying climate crisis and fuelling even more extreme fires.' Brazil accounted for 42 per cent of all tropical primary forest loss in 2024. In the Amazon, tree cover loss was the highest since 2016, while the Pantanal saw its worst year on record. Fires, made worse by Brazil's most severe drought to date, were responsible for two-thirds of the loss in the country – a more than sixfold increase from 2023. 'Brazil has made progress under President Lula (Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva), but the threat to forests remains,' said Mariana Oliveira, director of the Forests and Land Use Program at WRI Brasil. 'Without sustained investment in community fire prevention, stronger state-level enforcement and a focus on sustainable land use, hard-won gains risk being undone. As Brazil prepares to host Cop30 [climate summit], it has a powerful opportunity to put forest protection front and centre on the global stage.' Bolivia saw the second-highest forest loss in the tropics, overtaking the Democratic Republic of Congo for the first time. Primary forest loss there jumped by 200 per cent in 2024 to 1.5 million hectares, more than half of it driven by fires. 'The fires that tore through Bolivia in 2024 left deep scars – not only on the land but on the people who depend on it,' said Stasiek Czaplicki Cabezas, a Bolivian researcher and data journalist for Revista Nómadas. 'The damage could take centuries to undo.' Colombia, meanwhile, experienced a nearly 50 per cent increase in forest loss, though largely from illegal mining and coca cultivation rather than fire. 'We need to keep supporting local, nature-based economies – especially in remote areas – and invest in solutions that protect the environment, create jobs and foster peace,' said Joaquin Carrizosa, senior advisor at WRI Colombia. Forest loss also spiked across Central Africa, particularly in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Republic of Congo. In the ROC, fire-related loss rose to 45 per cent, driven by drought and unseasonably hot conditions. In the DRC, longstanding poverty and conflict continue to fuel deforestation. 'There's no silver bullet,' said Teodyl Nkuintchua, WRI Africa's Congo Basin strategy and engagement lead. 'But we won't change the current trajectory until people across the Congo Basin are fully empowered to lead conservation efforts that also support their rural economies.' Dr Matt Hansen, co-director of the GLAD Lab, warned: 'We're seeing unprecedented forest loss from fire in the few remaining 'High Forest, Low Deforestation' countries, like the Republic of Congo. This new dynamic is outside of current policy frameworks or intervention capabilities and will severely test our ability to maintain intact forests within a warming climate.' Amid the devastation, the report highlighted progress in parts of Southeast Asia. Indonesia reduced primary forest loss by 11 per cent, helped by long-standing efforts to restore degraded land and control fires. Malaysia saw a 13 per cent decline and dropped out of the top 10 for tropical forest loss for the first time. 'We're proud that Indonesia is one of the few countries in the world to reduce primary forest loss,' said Arief Wijaya, managing director at WRI Indonesia. 'But deforestation remains a concern due to plantations, small-scale farming and mining – even within protected areas.' The year also saw intense fire seasons in boreal forests, with Canada and Russia contributing to a 5 per cent rise in total tree cover loss globally – 30 million hectares in total, an area roughly the size of Italy. To meet the goal of halting forest loss by 2030, the world needs to cut deforestation by 20 per cent each year starting now. But in 2024, tropical forest loss increased by 80 per cent. 'Countries have repeatedly pledged to halt deforestation and forest degradation,' said Kelly Levin, chief of science, data and systems change at the Bezos Earth Fund. 'Yet the data reveal a stark gap between promises made and progress delivered.' Rod Taylor, director of forests and nature conservation at WRI, added: 'Forest fires and land clearing are driving up emissions, while the climate is already changing faster than forests can adapt. This crisis is pushing countless species to the brink and forcing Indigenous Peoples and local communities from their ancestral lands.' The report says that the path forward requires stronger fire prevention, deforestation-free supply chains, support for Indigenous land stewardship and greater political will, especially from countries that made bold commitments at climate summits, but are failing to follow through.
GMA Network
22-05-2025
- Science
- GMA Network
'Red alert': Fires drive tropical forest loss to record high
Firefighters battle the Tijarafe forest fire on the Canary Island of La Palma, Spain, July 16, 2023. REUTERS/ Borja Suarez/File photo PARIS, France - Eighteen football pitches every minute of every hour of every day: that is the record extent of tropical rainforest destroyed last year due in large measure to fires fueled by climate change, researchers reported Wednesday. Tally it all up and the world lost 67,000 square kilometers (25,900 square miles) of precious primary tropical forest, an area double the size of Belgium or Taiwan. The loss was 80 percent higher than in 2023, according to the Global Forest Watch think tank. "This level of forest destruction is completely unprecedented in more than 20 years of data," its co-director Elizabeth Goldman said in a briefing. "This is a global red alert." Fires are responsible for nearly half of these losses, surpassing for the first time agriculture as the main driver of destruction. Loss of tree cover in 2024 – from deforestation and fires, deliberate or accidental – generated more than three billion tonnes of CO2 pollution, exceeding India's emissions from fossil fuel use over the same period. Tropical forests, which harbor the highest concentrations of biodiversity, are the most threatened of any forest biomes on the planet. They are also sponges for CO2, helping to prevent global temperatures from rising even faster than they have. Forest fires are both a cause and effect of climate change, injecting billions of tonnes of CO2 in the atmosphere that in turn accelerate warming and the conditions leading to more destructive fires. Extreme conditions The exceptional fires last year were fueled by "extreme conditions" that made them more intense and difficult to control, the authors said. Climate change driven by the massive burning of fossil fuels and boosted by natural El Niño weather phenomenon made 2024 the hottest year on record, with temperatures averaging more than 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels. Historically, most fires in tropical forests are set to clear land for agriculture and livestock, especially the so-called "big four" commodities: palm oil, soy, beef and timber. Brazil saw 2.8 million hectares (6.9 million acres) of primary forest destroyed last year, two-thirds to fires typically started to make way for soybeans and cattle. In 2023, Brazil made measurable progress in reducing forest loss during President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's first year after returning to office. "But this progress is threatened by the expansion of agriculture," said Sarah Carter, a researcher at the World Resources Institute in Washington. The Brazilian Amazon was most affected, with destruction at its highest level since 2016. Global Forest Watch reports on forest destruction from all causes, deliberate or accidental. This stands in contrast to the Brazilian government's monitoring network MapBiomas, which published figures last week showing a sharp decline in deforestation in 2024 -- but based on narrower criteria and not including many areas ravaged by fire. New phenomenon Forest protection is high on the agenda of the COP30 UN climate conference that Brazil will host in November in the tropical city of Belem. Neighboring Bolivia's forest loss –- 1.5 million hectares – skyrocketed by 200 percent last year, with a record 3.6 percent of primary forests destroyed in a single year, mostly due to fires set to clear land for industrial-scale farms, according to the report. The picture is mixed elsewhere, with improvements in Indonesia and Malaysia but a sharp deterioration in Congo-Brazzaville and the Democratic Republic of Congo. While policies have resulted in a slowdown of the extent of forests lost to palm oil plantations, notably in Asia, the destructive footprint of other commodities has expanded, including avocados, coffee and cocoa. "We shouldn't assume that the drivers are always going to be the same," said Rod Taylor, director of the WRI's forest program. "One new driver we are seeing, for example, is linked to mining and critical minerals." — Agence France-Presse
Hindustan Times
22-05-2025
- General
- Hindustan Times
Tropical forest loss doubles, fire a leading cause: Report
Fires caused by dry conditions, in turn brought about by the climate crisis resulted in record forest loss in 2024, including in India, according to new data from the University of Maryland's GLAD (Global Land Analysis & Discovery) Lab released by World Resources Institute's Global Forest Watch platform. The loss of tropical primary forests reached 6.7 million hectares in the year — nearly twice as much as in 2023 and an area nearly the size of Panama, at the rate of 18 soccer fields every minute, Global Forest Watch said in a statement on Wednesday. India saw a 6.9% decrease in tree cover loss between 2023 and 2024 but a 5.9% increase in loss of humid primary forests in 2024, according to the data. One of the factors that may have led to increase in primary forest loss last year in India are forest fires, the data indicates. Primary forest loss due to fires was around 950 hectares last year compared to 368 hectares in 2023, a 158% rise. India lost 22,958 hectares of primary forests compared to 21,672 hectares in 2023. Of this, 22,008 hectares were lost due to non-forest drivers. That is the global trend too. For the first time in the records of GFW, fires and not agriculture were the leading cause of tropical primary forest loss, accounting for nearly 50% of all forest loss. This marks a dramatic shift from recent years, when fires averaged just around 20% to forest loss. Tropical primary forest loss driven by other causes also jumped by 14%, the sharpest increase since 2016. 'This level of forest loss is unlike anything we've seen in over 20 years of data. It's a global red alert — a collective call to action for every country, every business and every person who cares about a liveable planet. Our economies, our communities, our health — none of it can survive without forests,' said Elizabeth Goldman, Co-Director, WRI's Global Forest Watch in a statement. Brazil with largest area under tropical forests, accounted for 42% of all tropical primary forest loss in 2024. Fires, fuelled by the worst drought on record, caused 66% of that loss-- over sixfold increase from 2023. The Amazon recorded its highest tree cover loss since 2016. Bolivia's primary forest loss increased by 200% in 2024. For the first time, it ranked second for tropical primary forest loss only to Brazil, overtaking the Democratic Republic of Congo despite having less than half its forest area, the analysis said. Fires burned five times more tropical primary forest in 2024 than in 2023. In tropical forests fires are almost entirely human caused, often started to clear land for agriculture and spreading out of control in nearby forests. 2024 was the hottest year on record with hot, dry conditions largely caused by climate change and El Nino. Latin America was particularly hard hit, the analysis said. The area under tree cover includes all tree cover (planted, natural, primary, agroforestry); while primary humid forests are essentially old growth forests which have not been regrown, Global Forest Watch data shows. GFW which mainly uses satellite data for their analysis records India's baseline tree cover as 38,830,421 ha in 2001 and primary forest cover as 10,185,436 ha. From 2002 to 2024, India lost 348,000 ha of humid primary forest, making up 15% of its total tree cover loss in the same time period. From 2001 to 2024, India lost 2.31 million hectares of tree cover, equivalent to a 7.1% decrease in tree cover since 2000, GFW said. The dominant drivers of primary forest loss in India are shifting cultivation, agriculture and logging. Most of the loss since 2001 has occurred in northeastern states including Assam, Nagaland, Mizoram etc according to GFW. From 2000 to 2020, India gained 1.78 million ha of tree cover equal to 1.4% of the global total. The Union environment ministry did not respond to HT's queries on the forest cover loss in 2024 . HT reported on May 9 that India reported that its forest and tree cover is now 25.17% of its geographical area as per the latest India State of Forest Report (2023).
Time of India
21-05-2025
- Science
- Time of India
'Red alert': Fires drive tropical forest loss to record high
Eighteen football pitches every minute of every hour of every day: that is the record extent of tropical rainforest destroyed last year due in large measure to fires fuelled by climate change, researchers reported Wednesday. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Tally it all up and the world lost 67,000 square kilometres (25,900 square miles) of precious primary tropical forest, an area double the size of Belgium or Taiwan. The loss was 80 percent higher than in 2023, according to the think tank. "This level of forest destruction is completely unprecedented in more than 20 years of data," its co-director Elizabeth Goldman said in a briefing. "This is a global red alert." Fires are responsible for nearly half of these losses, surpassing for the first time agriculture as the main driver of destruction. Loss of tree cover in 2024 -- from deforestation and fires, deliberate or accidental, generated more than three billion tonnes of CO2 pollution, exceeding India's emissions from fossil fuel use over the same period. Tropical forests, which harbour the highest concentrations of biodiversity, are the most threatened of any forest biomes on the planet. They are also sponges for CO2, helping to prevent global temperatures from rising even faster than they have. Forest fires are both a cause and effect of climate change, injecting billions of tonnes of CO2 in the atmosphere that in turn accelerate warming and the conditions leading to more destructive fires. Extreme conditions The exceptional fires last year were fuelled by "extreme conditions" that made them more intense and difficult to control, the authors said. Climate change driven by the massive burning of fossil fuels and boosted by natural El Nino weather phenomenon made 2024 the hottest year on record, with temperatures averaging more than 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) above preindustrial levels. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Historically, most fires in tropical forests are set to clear land for agriculture and livestock, especially the so-called "big four" commodities: palm oil, soy, beef and timber. Brazil saw 2.8 million hectares (6.9 million acres) of primary forest destroyed last year, two-thirds to fires typically started to make way for soybeans and cattle. In 2023, Brazil made measurable progress in reducing forest loss during President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's first year after returning to office. "But this progress is threatened by the expansion of agriculture," said Sarah Carter, a researcher at the World Resources Institute in Washington. The Brazilian Amazon was most affected, with destruction at its highest level since 2016. Global Forest Watch reports on forest destruction from all causes, deliberate or accidental. This stands in contrast to the Brazilian government's monitoring network MapBiomas, which published figures last week showing a sharp decline in deforestation in 2024, but based on narrower criteria and not including many areas ravaged by fire. New phenomenon Forest protection is high on the agenda of the COP30 UN climate conference that Brazil will host in November in the tropical city of Belem. Neighbouring Bolivia's forest loss, 1.5 million hectares skyrocketed by 200 percent last year, with a record 3.6 percent of primary forests destroyed in a single year, mostly due to fires set to clear land for industrial-scale farms, according to the report. The picture is mixed elsewhere, with improvements in Indonesia and Malaysia but a sharp deterioration in Congo-Brazzaville and the Democratic Republic of Congo. While policies have resulted in a slowdown of the extent of forests lost to palm oil plantations, notably in Asia, the destructive footprint of other commodities has expanded, including avocados, coffee and cocoa. "We shouldn't assume that the drivers are always going to be the same," said Rod Taylor, director of the WRI's forest programme. "One new driver we are seeing, for example, is linked to mining and critical minerals."
