A NASA satellite observation of deforestation near Rio Branco in Brazil observed July 28 2000

Djouce Mountain, along with most of the island of Ireland, was systematically clear-felled during the 17th and 18th centuries, in order to obtain wood mainly for shipbuilding. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration ( NASA, ˈnæsə is an agency of the United States government, responsible for the nation's public space program Rio Branco (lit White River) is the biggest city and the capital of the Brazilian state of Acre. Djouce ( sometimes referred to as Djouce Mountain, is a mountain situated in the northeastern section of the Wicklow Mountains. Ireland (pronounced /ˈaɾlənd/ Éire) is the third largest island in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world Clearcutting or clearfelling is a Forestry / Logging practice in which the clear majority of all trees in a forest sector are cut down ^[1]

Deforestation is the conversion of forested areas to non-forest land for use such as arable land, pasture, urban use, logged area, or wasteland. A forest is an area with a high density of Trees There are many definitions of a forest based on various criteria In Geography, arable land (from Latin arare, to Plough) is an agricultural term meaning land that can be used for Pasture is land with Herbaceous vegetation cover used for grazing of Ungulate Livestock as part of a Farm or Ranch. Generally, the removal or destruction of significant areas of forest cover has resulted in a degraded environment with reduced biodiversity. Biodiversity is the variation of Life forms within a given Ecosystem, Biome or for the entire Earth. In many countries, massive deforestation is ongoing and is shaping climate and geography. Climate encompasses the temperatures humidity rainfall atmospheric particle count and numerous other meteorogical factors in a given region over long periods of Geography (from Greek γεωγραφία - geografia) is the study of the Earth and its lands features inhabitants and phenomena Deforestation results from removal of trees without sufficient reforestation, and results in declines in habitat and biodiversity, wood for fuel and industrial use, and quality of life. Reforestation is the restocking of existing forests and woodlands which have been depleted with native tree stock ^[2] ♥

From about the mid-1800s, the planet has experienced an unprecedented rate of change of destruction of forests worldwide. ^[3] Forests in Europe are adversely affected by acid rain and very large areas of Siberia have been harvested since the collapse of the Soviet Union. Siberia (Сиби́рь Sibir) is the name given to the vast region constituting almost all of Northern Asia and for the most part currently serving The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 In the last two decades, Afghanistan has lost over 70% of its forests throughout the country. Afghanistan /æfˈgænɪstæn/ officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan ( Pashto: د افغانستان اسلامي جمهوریت, ^[4] However, it is in the world's great tropical rainforests where the destruction is most pronounced at the current time and where wholesale felling is having an adverse effect on biodiversity and contributing to the ongoing Holocene mass extinction. Tropical rainforests are generally found near the Equator. They are common in Asia, Australia, Africa, South America, Central Clearcutting or clearfelling is a Forestry / Logging practice in which the clear majority of all trees in a forest sector are cut down Biodiversity is the variation of Life forms within a given Ecosystem, Biome or for the entire Earth. The Holocene extinction event is the widespread ongoing Mass extinction of Species during the modern Holocene epoch. ^[5]

About half of the mature tropical forests, between 750 to 800 million hectares of the original 1. Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests (TSMF also known as tropical moist forests, are a Tropical and Subtropical Forest 5 to 1. 6 billion hectares that once covered the planet have fallen. ^[6] The forest loss is already acute in Southeast Asia, the second of the world's great biodiversity hot spots. Much of what remains is in the Amazon basin, where the Amazon Rainforest covered more than 600 million hectares. The Amazon Rainforest (Brazilian Portuguese: Floresta Amazônica or Amazônia; Spanish: Selva Amazónica or Amazonía The forests are being destroyed at a pace tracking the rapid pace of human population growth. Overpopulation refers to a condition where an Organism 's numbers exceed the Carrying capacity of its Habitat. Unless significant measures are taken on a world-wide basis to preserve them, by 2030 there will only be ten percent remaining ^[3][6] with another ten percent in a degraded condition. ^[3] 80 percent will have been lost and with them the irreversible loss of hundreds of thousands of species. ^[3]

Many tropical countries, including Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Bangladesh, China, Sri Lanka, Laos, Nigeria, Liberia, Guinea, Ghana and the Cote d'lvoire have lost large areas of their rainforest. The Republic of Indonesia ( (Republik Indonesia is a Country in Southeast Asia. The Kingdom of Thailand (ˈtaɪlænd ราชอาณาจักรไทย, râːtɕʰa-ʔaːnaːtɕɑ̀k-tʰɑj For the biogeographical region see Malesia Malaysia (məˈleɪʒə or /məˈleɪziə/ is a country that consists of thirteen states and ( Bengali: বাংলাদেশ inc-Latn Bangladesh) officially China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka ( Sinhalese:, இலங்கை known as Ceylon before 1972 is an Island Laos (ˈlɑːoʊs or /ˈlaʊs/ officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a Landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma Nigeria, officially named the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal Constitutional republic comprising thirty-six states and one Federal Liberia, officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the west coast of Africa, bordered by Sierra Leone, Guinea, Côte d'Ivoire Guinea, officially Republic of Guinea (pronounced /ˈgɪni/ République de Guinée is a country in West Africa, formerly known as French Guinea The Republic of Ghana is a country in West Africa. It borders Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast to the west Burkina Faso to the north Togo to the Côte d'Ivoire (ˌkoʊt divˈwɑː(r ' in English, kot diˈvwaʀ in French) or Ivory Coast, officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a Rainforests are Forests characterized by high Rainfall with definitions setting minimum normal annual rainfall between 1750–2000 mm (68-78 inches 90% of the forests of the Philippine archipelago have been cut. The Philippines ( Filipino: Pilipinas, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (fil ''Republika ng Pilipinas'' RP An archipelago (ɑrkəˈpɛləgoʊ is a chain or cluster of Islands The word archipelago literally means "chief Sea " from Italian ^[7] In 1960 Central America still had 4/5 of its original forest; now it is left with only 2/5 of it. Madagascar has lost 95% of its rainforests. Madagascar, or Republic of Madagascar (older name Malagasy Republic) is an Island nation in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern Atlantic coast of Brazil has lost 90-95% of its Mata Atlântica rainforest. |utc_offset = -2 to -4 |time_zone_DST = BRST |utc_offset_DST = -2 to -5 |cctld The Atlantic Forest ( Mata Atlântica in Portuguese) is a region of tropical and subtropical moist forest, tropical dry forest, tropical ^[8] Half of the Brazilian state of Rondonia's 24. |utc_offset = -2 to -4 |time_zone_DST = BRST |utc_offset_DST = -2 to -5 |cctld Rondônia (xõˈdõnia is a state in Brazil, located in the north-western part of the country 3 million hectares have been destroyed or severely degraded in recent years. As of 2007, less than 1% of Haiti's forests remain, causing many to call Haiti a Caribbean desert. Haiti ( English: ˈheɪ·tiː or haɪ·ˈjiː·tiː French Haïti a·i·ti Haitian Creole: ^[9] Between 1990 and 2005, Nigeria lost a staggering 79% of its old-growth forests. Nigeria, officially named the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal Constitutional republic comprising thirty-six states and one Federal ^[10] Several countries, notably the Philippines, Thailand and India have declared their deforestation a national emergency. The Philippines ( Filipino: Pilipinas, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (fil ''Republika ng Pilipinas'' RP The Kingdom of Thailand (ˈtaɪlænd ราชอาณาจักรไทย, râːtɕʰa-ʔaːnaːtɕɑ̀k-tʰɑj India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country ^[11][12]

Impact on the environment

Orbital photograph of human deforestation in progress in the Tierras Bajas project in eastern Bolivia. Photograph courtesy NASA.

Generally, the removal or destruction of significant areas of forest cover has resulted in a degraded environment with reduced biodiversity. Biodiversity is the variation of Life forms within a given Ecosystem, Biome or for the entire Earth. In many countries, massive deforestation is ongoing and is shaping climate and geography. Climate encompasses the temperatures humidity rainfall atmospheric particle count and numerous other meteorogical factors in a given region over long periods of Geography (from Greek γεωγραφία - geografia) is the study of the Earth and its lands features inhabitants and phenomena

Deforestation is a substantial contributor to global warming,^[13] and although 70% of the oxygen we breathe comes from the photosynthesis of marine green algae and cyanobacteria,^[14] the mass destroying of the worlds rain forests is not beneficial to our environment. Photosynthesis is a Metabolic pathway that converts Light Energy into Chemical energy. The green algae (singular green alga) are the large group of Algae from which the Embryophytes (higher plants emerged Cyanobacteria, also known as blue-green algae, blue-green bacteria or Cyanophyta, is a phylum of Bacteria that obtain their energy In addition, the incineration and burning of forest plants in order to clear land releases tonnes of CO₂ which increases the impact of global warming. ^[13]

Deforestation reduces the content of water in the soil and groundwater as well as atmospheric moisture. Deforestation reduces soil cohesion, so that erosion, flooding and landslides often ensue. Forests support considerable biodiversity, providing valuable habitat for wildlife; moreover, forests foster medicinal conservation and the recharge of aquifers. Biodiversity is the variation of Life forms within a given Ecosystem, Biome or for the entire Earth. Wildlife includes all non-domesticated plants animals and other organisms Herbalism is a traditional Medicinal or Folk medicine practice based on the use of Plants and Plant extracts Herbalism is also known as An aquifer is an underground layer of Water -bearing Permeable rock or unconsolidated materials ( Gravel, Sand, Silt, or Clay With forest biotopes being a major, irreplaceable source of new drugs (like taxol), deforestation can destroy genetic variations (such as crop resistance) irretrievably. Paclitaxel is a Mitotic inhibitor used in Cancer Chemotherapy. Genetics (from Ancient Greek grc-Latn genetikos, “genitive” and that from grc-Latn genesis, “origin” a discipline of Biology, is

Shrinking forest cover lessens the landscape's capacity to intercept, retain and transport precipitation. Instead of trapping precipitation, which then percolates to groundwater systems, deforested areas become sources of surface water runoff, which moves much faster than subsurface flows. That quicker transport of surface water can translate into flash flooding and more localized floods than would occur with the forest cover. A flash flood is a rapid flooding of geomorphic lowlying areas - washes rivers and streams Deforestation also contributes to decreased evapotranspiration, which lessens atmospheric moisture which in some cases affects precipitation levels down wind from the deforested area, as water is not recycled to downwind forests, but is lost in runoff and returns directly to the oceans. Evapotranspiration (ET is a term used to describe the sum of Evaporation and Plant Transpiration from the earth's land surface to Atmosphere According to one preliminary study, in deforested north and northwest China, the average annual precipitation decreased by one third between the 1950s and the 1980s.

Longterm gains can be obtained by managing forest lands sustainable to maintain both forest cover and provide a biodegradable renewable resource. Forests are also important stores of organic carbon, and forests can extract carbon dioxide and pollutants from the air, thus contributing to biosphere stability. Carbon (kɑɹbən is a Chemical element with the symbol C and its Atomic number is 6 Carbon dioxide ( Chemical formula:) is a Chemical compound composed of two Oxygen Atoms covalently bonded to a single Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into an environment that causes instability disorder harm or discomfort to the physical systems or living organisms they are in Deforestation (mainly in tropical areas) account for up to one-third of total anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions. ^[15] Forests are also valued for their aesthetic beauty and as a cultural resource and tourist attraction.

Economic impact

Historically utilization of forest products, including timber and fuel wood, have played a key role in human societies, comparable to the roles of water and cultivable land. Today, developed countries continue to utilize timber for building houses, and wood pulp for paper. In developing countries almost three billion people rely on wood for heating and cooking. ^[16] The forest products industry is a large part of the economy in both developed and developing countries. Short-term economic gains made by conversion of forest to agriculture, or over-exploitation of wood products, typically leads to loss of long-term income and long term biological productivity (hence reduction in nature's services). Nature's services is an umbrella term for the ways in which Nature benefits humans particularly those benefits that can be measured in economic terms West Africa, Madagascar, Southeast Asia and many other regions have experienced lower revenue because of declining timber harvests. West Africa or Western Africa is the Westernmost Region of the African Continent. Madagascar, or Republic of Madagascar (older name Malagasy Republic) is an Island nation in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern Illegal logging causes billions of dollars of losses to national economies annually. ^[17]

A new study found that the emerging market for carbon credits: "Deforestation in tropical countries is often driven by the perverse economic reality that forests are worth more dead than alive. But a new study by an international consortium of researchers has found that the emerging market for carbon credits has the potential to radically alter that equation. "^[18] The new procedures to get the massive amounts of wood are causing more harm to the economy and over powers the amount of money spent by people employed in logging. According to a study, "in most areas studied, the various ventures that prompted deforestation rarely generated more than US$5 for every ton of carbon they released and frequently returned far less than US $1. " The price on the European market for an offset tied to a one-ton reduction in carbon is 23 euro (about $35). ^[19]

Characterization

Throughout most of history, humans have considered forest clearing as necessary for most activities besides forestry. In most countries, only after serious shortages of wood and other forest products are policies implemented to ensure forest resources are used in a sustainable manner. Typically in developed countries, as urbanization and economic development increases, land previously used for farming is abandoned and reverted to forests. ^[20] Today, in the developed world, most countries are experiencing forest restoration and most losses in forest land are primarily driven by expanding urban areas. ^[21]

In developing countries, human-caused deforestation and the degradation of forest habitat is primarily due to expansion of agriculture, slash and burn practices, urban sprawl, illegal logging, over harvest of fuel wood, mining, and petroleum exploration. Slash and burn consists of cutting and burning of Forests or Woodlands to create fields for Agriculture or Pasture for Livestock, or

It has been argued that deforestation trends follow the Kuznets curve^[22] however even if true this is problematic in so-called hot-spots because of the risk of irreversible loss of non-economic forest values for example valuable habitat or species loss. Kuznets curve is the graphical representation of Simon Kuznets 's theory ('Kuznets hypothesis' that Economic inequality increases over time while a country is

The effects of human related deforestation can be mitigated through environmentally sustainable practices that reduce permanent destruction of forests or even act to preserve and rehabilitate disrupted forestland (see Reforestation and Treeplanting). Reforestation is the restocking of existing forests and woodlands which have been depleted with native tree stock Treeplanting is the Process of Transplanting tree seedlings, generally for forestry land reclamation or landscaping purposes These methods help the cause and provide a sustainable growth of forests and allow lumber to become a renewable resource

Definitions of deforestation

Deforestation defined broadly can include not only conversion to non-forest, but also degradation that reduces forest quality - the density and structure of the trees, the ecological services supplied, the biomass of plants and animals, the species diversity and the genetic diversity. Humankind benefits from a multitude of resources and processes that are supplied by natural Ecosystems. Biomass, in Ecology, is the mass of living biological organisms in a given area or Ecosystem at a given time Species diversity refers to the number and distribution of Species in one location Genetic diversity is a level of Biodiversity that refers to the total number of genetic characteristics in the genetic makeup of a species A narrow definition of deforestation is: the removal of forest cover to an extent that allows for alternative land use. The United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD) uses a broad definition of deforestation, while the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) uses a narrow definition. The United Nations ( UN) is an International organization whose stated aims are to facilitate cooperation in International law, International security

Definitions can also be grouped as those which refer to changes in land cover and those which refer to changes in land use. Land cover is the physical material at the surface of the earth Land use' is also often used to refer to the distinct land use types in Zoning. Land cover measurements often use a percent of cover to determine deforestation. Land cover is the physical material at the surface of the earth This type of definition has the advantage in that large areas can be easily measured, for example from satellite photos. This article is about artificial satellites For natural satellites also known as moons see Natural satellite. A forest cover removal of 90% may still be considered forest in some cases. Under this definition areas that may have few values of a natural forest such as plantations and even urban or suburban areas may be considered forest. Fundamentally a plantation is usually a large Farm or estate, especially in a tropical or semitropical country on which Cotton, Tobacco

Land use definitions measure deforestation by a change in land use. Land use' is also often used to refer to the distinct land use types in Zoning. This definition may consider areas to be forest that are not commonly considered as such. An area can be lacking trees but still considered a forest. It may be a land designated for afforestation or an area designated administratively as forest.

Use of the term deforestation

It has been argued that the lack of specificity in use of the term deforestation distorts forestry issues. ^[23] The term deforestation is used to refer to activities that use the forest, for example, fuel wood cutting, commercial logging, as well as activities that cause temporary removal of forest cover such as the slash and burn technique, a component of some shifting cultivation agricultural systems or clearcutting. Fuel is any material that is burned or altered in order to obtain energy Logging is the process in which Trees are cut down for Forest management and Timber. Slash and burn consists of cutting and burning of Forests or Woodlands to create fields for Agriculture or Pasture for Livestock, or For methods see Slash and burn Shifting cultivation is an Agricultural system in which plots of land are cultivated temporarily then abandoned Clearcutting or clearfelling is a Forestry / Logging practice in which the clear majority of all trees in a forest sector are cut down It is also used to describe forest clearing for annual crops and forest loss from over-grazing. Grazing generally describes a type of Predation in which an Herbivore feeds on Plants (such as Grasses, or more broadly on a multicellular Some definitions of deforestation include activities such as establishment of industrial forest plantations that are considered afforestation by others. It has also been argued that the term deforestation is such an emotional term that is used "so ambiguously that it is virtually meaningless" unless it is specified what is meant. ^[24] More specific terms terms include forest decline, forest fragmentation and forest degradation, loss of forest cover and land use conversion.

The term also has a traditional legal sense of the conversion of Royal forest land into purlieu or other non-forest land use. A royal forest is an area of land where certain rights are reserved for a Monarch or the Aristocracy, usually set aside for Hunting (see Medieval hunting Purlieu is a term used of the outlying parts of a Place or district

Historical causes

Further information: Timeline of environmental events

Prehistory

Deforestation has been practiced by humans since the beginnings of civilization. The timeline of environmental events is a historical account of events that have shaped humanity's perspective on the environment Fire was the first tool that allowed humans to modify the landscape. Fire is the heat and light energy released during a Chemical reaction, in particular a combustion reaction. The first evidence of deforestation appears in the Mesolithic. The Mesolithic or Middle Stone Age was a period in the development of human technology in between the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age and the Neolithic or New Stone Age It was probably used to drive game into more accessible areas. With the advent of agriculture, fire became the prime tool to clear land for crops. Agriculture refers to the production of goods through the growing of plants and fungi and the raising of domesticated Animals The study of agriculture In Europe there is little solid evidence before 7000 BC. Mesolithic foragers used fire to create openings for red deer and wild boar. A hunter-gatherer society is one whose primary subsistence method involves the direct procurement of edible plants and animals from the wild Foraging and Hunting The Red Deer ( Cervus elaphus) is one of the largest Deer species The boar or wild boar ( Sus scrofa) is an Omnivorous, gregarious Mammal of the biological family Suidae. In Great Britain shade tolerant species such as oak and ash are replaced in the pollen record by hazels, brambles, grasses and nettles. See also Kingdom of Great Britain Great Britain (Breatainn Mhòr Prydain Fawr Breten Veur Graet Breetain is the larger of the two main islands The term oak can be used as part of the common name of any of about 400 species of Trees and Shrubs in the Genus Quercus (from Latin An ash can be any of four different tree genera from four very distinct families; most commonly in a combined form (e Palynology is the science that studies contemporary and fossil Palynomorphs including Pollen, Spores, Dinoflagellate Cysts Acritarchs The hazels ( Corylus) are a genus of Deciduous Trees and large Shrubs native to the temperate northern hemisphere Removal of the forests led to decreased transpiration resulting in the formation of upland peat bogs. Transpiration is the Evaporation of water from the aerial parts of Plants especially leaves but also stems Flowers and Roots A bog or mire is a Wetland type that accumulates Acidic Peat, a deposit of dead plant material &ndash usually Mosses but also Widespread decrease in elm pollen across Europe between 8400-8300 BC and 7200-7000 BC, starting in southern Europe and gradually moving north to Great Britain, may represent land clearing by fire at the onset of Neolithic agriculture. Elms are Deciduous and Semi-deciduous Trees comprising the genus Ulmus, family Ulmaceae, found Pollen is a fine to coarse powder consisting of microgametophytes ( pollen grains) which produce the male Gametes (sperm cells of The Neolithic (from Greek νεολιθικός — neolithikos from νέος neos, "new" + λίθος lithos

An array of Neolithic artifacts, including bracelets, axe heads, chisels, and polishing tools.

The Neolithic period saw much more extensive deforestation for farming land. The Neolithic (from Greek νεολιθικός — neolithikos from νέος neos, "new" + λίθος lithos Stone axes were now being made not just from flint, but from a wide variety of hard rocks from across Britain and North America as well. Chipped stone tools were made by Stone age peoples worldwide Paleolithic tools were relatively simple repeated small flakes being struck or pressed from a cobble Flint (or flintstone) is a hard sedimentary Cryptocrystalline form of the Mineral Quartz, categorized as a variety of Chert See also Kingdom of Great Britain Great Britain (Breatainn Mhòr Prydain Fawr Breten Veur Graet Breetain is the larger of the two main islands They include the noted Langdale axe industry in the English Lake District, quarries developed at Penmaenmawr in North Wales and numerous other locations. The Langdale axe industry is the name given by archaeologists to the centre of a specialised Stone tool manufacturing at Great Langdale in England 's The Lake District, also known as The Lakes or Lakeland, is a rural area in North West England. North Wales (Gogledd Cymru is the northernmost unofficial region of Wales, bordered to the south by Mid Wales and to the east by England. Rough-outs were made locally near the quarries, and some were polished locally to give a fine finish. This step not only increased the mechanical strength of the axe, but also made penetration of wood easier. In Materials science, the strength of a material refers to the material's ability to resist an applied force Flint was still used from sources such as Grimes Graves but from many other mines across Europe. Flint (or flintstone) is a hard sedimentary Cryptocrystalline form of the Mineral Quartz, categorized as a variety of Chert Grimes Graves is a large Neolithic Flint mining complex near Brandon in England close to the border between Norfolk and

Evidence of deforestation has been found in Minoan Crete; for example the environs of the Palace of Knossos were severely deforested in the Bronze Age. Crete ( Greek: Κρήτη transliteration: Krētē, modern transliteration Kriti) is the largest of the Greek islands and the Knossos (alternative spellings Knossus, Cnossus, Greek Κνωσός kno̞ˈso̞s also known as the Knossos Palace is the largest The term Bronze Age refers to a period in human cultural development when the most advanced Metalworking (at least in systematic and widespread use included techniques for ^[25]

Pre-industrial history

In ancient Greece, Tjeered van Andel and co-writers^[26] summarized three regional studies of historic erosion and alluviation and found that, wherever adequate evidence exists, a major phase of erosion follows, by about 500-1000 years the introduction of farming in the various regions of Greece, ranging from the later Neolithic to the Early Bronze Age. The thousand years following the mid-first millennium BCE saw serious, intermittent pulses of soil erosion in numerous places. The historic silting of ports along the southern coasts of Asia Minor (e. Silt is Soil or rock derived Granular material of a Grain size between sand and clay Anatolia (Anadolu Ανατολία Anatolía) or Asia minor, comprising most of modern Turkey, is the geographic region bounded by the Black g. Clarus, and the examples of Ephesus, Priene and Miletus, where harbors had to be abandoned because of the silt deposited by the Meander) and in coastal Syria during the last centuries BC. Clarus (Greek Klaros) in the territory of Colophon in the Ionian coast of Asia Minor was a much-revered much-famed cult center described Ephesus ( Hittite Apasa; Ancient Greek; Turkish Efes) was a city of ancient Anatolia. Priene ( Ancient Greek: Πριήνη, Priēnē was an ancient Greek city of Ionia (and member of the Ionian League) at the base Miletus (mī lē' təs ( Ancient Greek: Μίλητος literally Transliterated Milētos, Latin Miletus) was an Ancient Syria ( سوريّة or) officially the Syrian Arab Republic (Arabic ar الجمهورية العربية السورية

The famous silting up of the harbor for Bruges, which moved port commerce to Antwerp, also follow a period of increased settlement growth (and apparently of deforestation) in the upper river basins. Bruges (Brugge is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. ||-||-||-||} Antwerp ( Dutch:, French: Anvers) is a City and Municipality in Belgium and the capital of the In early medieval Riez in upper Provence, alluvial silt from two small rivers raised the riverbeds and widened the floodplain, which slowly buried the Roman settlement in alluvium and gradually moved new construction to higher ground; concurrently the headwater valleys above Riez were being opened to pasturage. Riez is a commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in southeastern France.

A typical progress trap is that cities were often built in a forested area providing wood for some industry (e. A progress trap is the condition societies experience when in pursuing progress human ingenuity inadvertently introduces problems that the society does not have the resources to solve g. construction, shipbuilding, pottery). When deforestation occurs without proper replanting, local wood supplies become difficult to obtain near enough to remain competitive, leading to the city's abandonment, as happened repeatedly in Ancient Asia Minor. Anatolia (Anadolu Ανατολία Anatolía) or Asia minor, comprising most of modern Turkey, is the geographic region bounded by the Black The combination of mining and metallurgy often went along this self-destructive path.

Meanwhile most of the population remaining active in (or indirectly dependent on) the agricultural sector, the main pressure in most areas remained land clearing for crop and cattle farming; fortunately enough wild green was usually left standing (and partially used, e. g. to collect firewood, timber and fruits, or to graze pigs) for wildlife to remain viable, and the hunting privileges of the elite (nobility and higher clergy) often protected significant woodlands.

Major parts in the spread (and thus more durable growth) of the population were played by monastical 'pioneering' (especially by the benedictine and cistercian orders) and some feudal lords actively attracting farmers to settle (and become tax payers) by offering relatively good legal and fiscal conditions – even when they did so to launch or encourage cities, there always was an agricultural belt around and even quite some within the walls. When on the other hand demography took a real blow by such causes as the Black Death or devastating warfare (e. The Black Death, or the Black Plague, was one of the deadliest Pandemics in human history widely thought to have been caused by a bacterium named Yersinia g. Genghis Khan's Mongol hordes in eastern and central Europe, Thirty Years' War in Germany) this could lead to settlements being abandoned, leaving land to be reclaimed by nature, even though the secondary forests usually lacked the original biodiversity. Genghis Khan ( or;, Chinggis Khaan, ʧiŋgɪs χaːŋ Činggis Qaɣan; 1162–1227 born (meaning "ironworker" was the Mongol founder For the Mauritanian Thirty Years' War see Char Bouba war. For the band see The 30 Years War. Secondary, or second-growth, forest is a Forest or Woodland area which has re-grown after a major disturbance such as Fire, Insect Biodiversity is the variation of Life forms within a given Ecosystem, Biome or for the entire Earth.

From 1100 to 1500 AD significant deforestation took place in Western Europe as a result of the expanding human population. Western Europe at its most general meaning means 'all the countries in the West of Europe ' Overpopulation refers to a condition where an Organism 's numbers exceed the Carrying capacity of its Habitat. The large-scale building of wooden sailing ships by European (coastal) naval owners since the 15th century for exploration, colonization, slave – and other trade on the high seas and (often related) naval warfare (the failed invasion of England by the Spanish Armada in 1559 and the battle of Lepanto 1577 are early cases of huge waste of prime timber; each of Nelson's Royal navy war ships at Trafalgar had required 6000 mature oaks) and piracy meant that whole woody regions were over-harvested, as in Spain, where this contributed to the paradoxical weakening of the domestic economy since Columbus' discovery of America made the colonial activities (plundering, mining, cattle, plantations, trade . A ship /ʃɪp/ is a large vessel that floats on water Ships are generally distinguished from Boats based on size The Spanish Armada ( Spanish: Grande y Felicísima Armada, "Great and Most Fortunate Navy" or Armada Invencible, "Invincible . . ) predominant.

In Changes in the Land (1983), William Cronon collected 17th century New England Englishmen's reports of increased seasonal flooding during the time that the forests were initially cleared, and it was widely believed that it was linked with widespread forest clearing upstream. William Cronon (born September 11, 1954) is the Frederick Jackson Turner and Vilas Research Professor of History Geography and Environmental Studies at the History See also History of New England New England's earliest inhabitants were Algonquian -speaking Native Americans including the

The massive use of charcoal on an industrial scale in Early Modern Europe was a new acceleration of the onslaught on western forests; even in Stuart England, the relatively primitive production of charcoal has already reached an impressive level. Charcoal' is the blackish residue consisting of impure Carbon obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from Animal and Vegetation The early modern period is a term used by historians to refer to the period in Western '''Europe''' and its first colonies which spans the three centuries between For ship timbers, Stuart England was so widely deforested that it depended on the Baltic trade and looked to the untapped forests of New England to supply the need. Baltic Seven Islandsgif|right|thumb|330px|A contemporary transnational Euroregion encompasses the islands of the Baltic countries History See also History of New England New England's earliest inhabitants were Algonquian -speaking Native Americans including the In France, Colbert planted oak forests to supply the French navy in the future; as it turned out, as the oak plantations matured in the mid-nineteenth century, the masts were no longer required. Jean-Baptiste Colbert ( August 29, 1619 — September 6, 1683) served as the French minister of finance from 1665 to 1683 under The term oak can be used as part of the common name of any of about 400 species of Trees and Shrubs in the Genus Quercus (from Latin

Norman F. Cantor's summary of the effects of late medieval deforestation applies equally well to Early Modern Europe:^[27]

"Europeans had lived in the midst of vast forests throughout the earlier medieval centuries. Norman F Cantor (born in Winnipeg, Canada on November 19, 1929, died in Miami Florida, United States on September After 1250 they became so skilled at deforestation that by 1500 AD they were running short of wood for heating and cooking. They were faced with a nutritional decline because of the elimination of the generous supply of wild game that had inhabited the now-disappearing forests, which throughout medieval times had provided the staple of their carnivorous high-protein diet. By 1500 Europe was on the edge of a fuel and nutritional disaster, [from] which it was saved in the sixteenth century only by the burning of soft coal and the cultivation of potatoes and maize. "

Specific parallels are seen in twentieth century deforestation occurring in many developing nations.

Deforestation today

Jungle burned for agriculture in southern Mexico.

Slash-and-burn is a method sometimes used by shifting cultivators to create short term yields from marginal soils. For methods see Slash and burn Shifting cultivation is an Agricultural system in which plots of land are cultivated temporarily then abandoned When practiced repeatedly, or without intervening fallow periods, the nutrient poor soils may be exhausted or eroded to an unproductive state. A nutrient is food or chemicals that an organism needs to live and grow or a substance used in an organism's metabolism which must be taken in from its environment Slash-and-burn techniques are used by native populations of over 200 million people worldwide. Slash and burn consists of cutting and burning of Forests or Woodlands to create fields for Agriculture or Pasture for Livestock, or While short-sighted, market-driven forestry practices are often one of the leading causes of forest degradation. Forestry is the Art and Science of managing forests tree Plantations and related Natural resources. The principal human-related causes of deforestation are agriculture and livestock grazing, urban sprawl, and mining and petroleum extraction. Growing worldwide demand for wood to be used for fire wood or in construction, paper and furniture - as well as clearing land for commercial and industrial development (including road construction) have combined with growing local populations and their demands for agricultural expansion and wood fuel to endanger ever larger forest areas. Wood is hard fibrous lignified structural tissue produced as secondary Xylem in the stems of Woody plants notably trees but also shrubs A road is an identifiable route, way or path between two or more places.

Agricultural development schemes in Mexico, Brazil and Indonesia moved large populations into the rainforest zone, further increasing deforestation rates. The United Mexican States ( or commonly Mexico (ˈmɛksɪkoʊ () is a federal constitutional Republic in North America. |utc_offset = -2 to -4 |time_zone_DST = BRST |utc_offset_DST = -2 to -5 |cctld The Republic of Indonesia ( (Republik Indonesia is a Country in Southeast Asia. Rainforests are Forests characterized by high Rainfall with definitions setting minimum normal annual rainfall between 1750–2000 mm (68-78 inches One fifth of the world's tropical rainforest was destroyed between 1960 and 1990. Estimates of deforestation of tropical forest for the 1990s range from about 55,630 to 120,000 square kilometres each year. At this rate, all tropical forests may be gone by the year 2090.

Ethiopia

Main article: Deforestation in Ethiopia

The main cause of deforestation in Ethiopia, located in East Africa, is a growing population and subsequent higher demand for agriculture, livestock production and fuel wood. Afromontane rainforests of SW Ethiopia are the world’s birthplace of Coffea arabica and harbor their last wild populations NOTE This intro is the result of careful NPOV work Please do not make potentially controversial edits to it without first discussing on the talk page East Africa is the Easternmost Region of the African Continent. Overpopulation refers to a condition where an Organism 's numbers exceed the Carrying capacity of its Habitat. ^[28] Other reasons include low education and inactivity from the government,^[29] although the current government has taken some steps to tackle deforestation. ^[30] Organizations such as Farm Africa are working with the federal and local governments to create a system of forest management. ^[31] Ethiopia, the third largest country in Africa by population, has been hit by famine many times because of shortages of rain and a depletion of natural resources. This is a list of African countries and dependencies by Population. A famine is a widespread shortage of food that may apply to any Faunal species which phenomenon is usually accompanied by regional Malnutrition, Starvation Deforestation has lowered the chance of getting rain, which is already low, and thus causes erosion. Bercele Bayisa, an Ethiopian farmer, offers one example why deforestation occurs. He said that his district was forested and full of wildlife, but overpopulation caused people to come to that land and clear it to plant crops, cutting all trees to sell as fire wood. ^[32]

Ethiopia has lost 98% of its forested regions in the last 50 years. ^[31] At the beginning of the 20th century, around 420,000 km² or 35% of Ethiopia's land was covered with forests. Recent reports indicate that forests cover less than 14. 2%^[31] or even only 11. 9% now. ^[33] Between 1990 and 2005, the country lost 14% of its forests or 21,000 km².

Madagascar

Massive deforestation with resulting desertification, water resource degradation and soil loss has affected approximately 94% of Madagascar's previously biologically productive lands. Desertification is the degradation of land in arid and dry sub-humid areas resulting primarily from human activities and influenced by climatic variations Water Crisis is a term that refers to the status of the world’s Water resources relative to human demand Soils retrogression and degradation in the French school of pedology are two regressive evolution processes associated with the loss of equilibrium of a stable Soil Most of this loss has occurred since independence from the French, and is the result of local people using slash-and-burn agricultural practises as they try to subsist. Slash and burn consists of cutting and burning of Forests or Woodlands to create fields for Agriculture or Pasture for Livestock, or ^[34] Largely due to deforestation, the country is currently unable to provide adequate food, fresh water and sanitation for its fast growing population. ^[35][36]

Nigeria

Main article: Deforestation in Nigeria

According to the FAO, Nigeria has the world's highest deforestation rate of primary forests. As of 2005 Nigeria has the highest rate of Deforestation in the world according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO. It has lost more than half of its primary forest in the last five years. Causes cited are logging, subsistence agriculture, and the collection of fuel wood. Slash and burn consists of cutting and burning of Forests or Woodlands to create fields for Agriculture or Pasture for Livestock, or

Brazil

Main article: Deforestation in Brazil

In Brazil the rate of deforestation is largely driven by commodity prices and world population growth. Brazil once had the highest Deforestation rate in the world and as of 2005 still has the largest area of forest removed annually |utc_offset = -2 to -4 |time_zone_DST = BRST |utc_offset_DST = -2 to -5 |cctld Recent development of a new variety of soybean has led to the displacement of beef ranches and farms of other crops, which, in turn, move farther into the forest. Certain areas such as the Atlantic Rainforest have been diminished to less than 10% of their original size and the Amazon Rainforest is awaiting the same fate at 600 fires daily. The Amazon Rainforest (Brazilian Portuguese: Floresta Amazônica or Amazônia; Spanish: Selva Amazónica or Amazonía Although much conservation work has been done, few national parks or reserves are efficiently enforced. In 2008, Brazil's Government has announced a record rate of deforestation in the Amazon. ^[37][38]

Indonesia

There are significantly large areas of forest in Indonesia that are being lost as native forest is cleared by large multi-national pulp companies and being replaced by plantations. The Republic of Indonesia ( (Republik Indonesia is a Country in Southeast Asia. In Sumatra millions of hectares of forest have been cleared often under the command of the central government in Jakarta who comply with multi national companies to remove the forest because of the need to pay off international debt obligations and to develop economically. Sumatra (also spelled Sumatera) is the sixth largest island in the world (approximately 470000 km² and is the largest island entirely in Indonesia (two Jakarta (also DKI Jakarta) is the Capital and largest city of Indonesia. In Kalimantan the consequences of deforestation have been profound and between 1991 and 1999 large areas of the forest were burned because of uncontrollable fire causing atmospheric pollution across South-East Asia. In most languages in the world the term Kalimantan refers to the Indonesian portion of the island of Borneo, while for Indonesians the name "Kalimantan" Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into an environment that causes instability disorder harm or discomfort to the physical systems or living organisms they are in A major source of deforestation is the logging industry, driven spectacularly by China and Japan. Logging is the process in which Trees are cut down for Forest management and Timber. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. [1]

United States

Loss of old growth forest in the United States. Ancient Woodland Old growth forest, (also termed primary forest, ancient forest, virgin forest, primeval forest, frontier The United States of America —commonly referred to as the
1620, 1850, and 1920 maps: William B. Greeley, The Relation of Geography to Timber Supply, Economic Geography, 1925, vol. 1, p. 1-11. Source of TODAY map: compiled by George Draffan from roadless area map in The Big Outside: A Descriptive Inventory of the Big Wilderness Areas of the United States, by Dave Foreman and Howie Wolke (Harmony Books, 1992). These maps represent only virgin forest lost. Some regrowth has occurred but not to the age, size or extent of 1620 due to population increases and food cultivation. See United States entry on left

Prior to the arrival of European-Americans about one half of the United States land area was forest, about 4 million square kilometers (1 billion acres) in 1600. A European American (Euro-American is a person who resides in the United States and is either from Europe or is the descendant of European immigrants For the next 300 years land was cleared, mostly for agriculture at a rate that matched the rate of population growth. For every person added to the population, one to two hectares of land was cultivated. ^[39] This trend continued until the 1920s when the amount of crop land stabilized in spite of continued population growth. As abandoned farm land reverted to forest the amount of forest land increased from 1952 reaching a peak in 1963 of 3,080,000 km² (762 million acres). Since 1963 there has been a steady decrease of forest area with the exception of some gains from 1997. Gains in forest land have resulted from conversions from crop land and pastures at a higher rate than loss of forest to development. Because urban development is expected to continue, an estimated 93,000 km² (23 million acres) of forest land is projected be lost by 2050 [2], a 3% reduction from 1997. Other qualitative issues have been identified such as the continued loss of old-growth forest,^[40] the increased fragmentation of forest lands, and the increased urbanization of forest land. ^[41]

Species extinctions in the Eastern Forest

According to a report by Stuart L. Pimm the extent of forest cover in the Eastern United States reached its lowest point in roughly 1872 with about 48 percent compared to the amount of forest cover in 1620. Of the 28 forest bird species with habitat exclusively in that forest, Pimm claims 4 become extinct either wholly or mostly because of habitat loss, the passenger pigeon, Carolina parakeet, ivory-billed woodpecker, and Bachman's Warbler. The passenger pigeon ( Ectopistes migratorius) or wild pigeon was a species of pigeon that was once the most common Bird in North America The Carolina Parakeet ( Conuropsis carolinensis)was the only Parrot species native to the eastern United States. The Ivory-billed Woodpecker ( Campephilus principalis) a very large member of the Woodpecker family, Picidae, is officially listed as an Bachman's Warbler ( Vermivora bachmanii) was a small Passerine Bird that inhabited the swamps and lowland forests of the southeast United States ^[42]

Australia

Victoria and NSW's remnant red gum forests including the Murray River's Barmah-Millewa, are increasingly being clear-felled using mechanical harvesters, destroying already rare habitat. The Murray River, or River Murray and sometimes informally referred to as the "Mighty Murray" is Australia 's largest River. Barmah is a town in Victoria, with the distinction of being located north of the southerly border with New South Wales. Clearcutting or clearfelling is a Forestry / Logging practice in which the clear majority of all trees in a forest sector are cut down A habitat (which is Latin for "it inhabits" is an Ecological or environmental area that is inhabited by a particular Species. Macnally estimates that approximately 82% of fallen timber has been removed from the southern Murray Darling basin,^[43] and the Mid-Murray Forest Management Area (including the Barmah and Gunbower forests) provides about 90% of Victoria's red gum timber. ^[44]

Environmental effects

Atmospheric pollution

Deforestation is often cited as one of the major causes of the enhanced greenhouse effect. The Greenhouse effect refers to the change in the Thermal equilibrium temperature of a planet or moon by the presence of an Atmosphere containing gas that absorbs According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change deforestation, mainly in tropical areas, account for up to one-third of total anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions. Anthropogenic effects processes objects or materials are those that are derived from Human activities as opposed to those occurring in Natural environments without Carbon dioxide ( Chemical formula:) is a Chemical compound composed of two Oxygen Atoms covalently bonded to a single ^[15] Trees and other plants remove carbon (in the form of carbon dioxide) from the atmosphere during the process of photosynthesis. Carbon (kɑɹbən is a Chemical element with the symbol C and its Atomic number is 6 Carbon dioxide ( Chemical formula:) is a Chemical compound composed of two Oxygen Atoms covalently bonded to a single Temperature and layers The temperature of the Earth's atmosphere varies with altitude the mathematical relationship between temperature and altitude varies among five Photosynthesis is a Metabolic pathway that converts Light Energy into Chemical energy. Both the decay and burning of wood releases much of this stored carbon back to the atmosphere. Deforestation also causes carbon stores held in soil to be released. Forests are stores of carbon and can be either sinks or sources depending upon environmental circumstances. Mature forests can be net sinks of carbon dioxide (see Carbon dioxide sink and Carbon cycle). The carbon cycle is the biogeochemical cycle by which carbon is exchanged among the Biosphere, Pedosphere, Geosphere, Hydrosphere, and

The water cycle is also affected by deforestation. Trees extract groundwater through their roots and release it into the atmosphere. When part of a forest is removed, the region cannot hold as much water and can result in a much drier climate.

Biodiversity

Some forests are rich in biological diversity. Biodiversity is the variation of Life forms within a given Ecosystem, Biome or for the entire Earth. Deforestation can cause the destruction of the habitats that support this biological diversity, thus contributing to the ongoing Holocene extinction event. A habitat (which is Latin for "it inhabits" is an Ecological or environmental area that is inhabited by a particular Species. The Holocene extinction event is the widespread ongoing Mass extinction of Species during the modern Holocene epoch. Numerous countries have developed Biodiversity Action Plans to limit clear cutting and slash and burn agricultural practices as deleterious to wildlife and vegetation, particularly when endangered species are present. This article is about a conservation biology topic For other uses of BAP see BAP (disambiguation. Slash and burn consists of cutting and burning of Forests or Woodlands to create fields for Agriculture or Pasture for Livestock, or Wildlife includes all non-domesticated plants animals and other organisms Vegetation is a general term for the plant life of a region it refers to the Ground cover provided by plants An endangered species is a population of an organism which is at risk of becoming Extinct because it is either few in numbers or threatened by changing environmental or predation

Water cycle and water resources

Trees, and plants in general, affect the water cycle significantly:

• their canopies intercept a proportion of precipitation, which is then evaporated back to the atmosphere (canopy interception);
• their litter, stems and trunks slow down surface runoff;
• their roots create macropores - large conduits - in the soil that increase infiltration of water;
• they contribute to terrestrial evaporation and reduce soil moisture via transpiration;
• their litter and other organic residue change soil properties that affect the capacity of soil to store water. The Earth 's Water is always in movement and the water cycle, also known as the hydrologic cycle, describes the continuous movement of water on above In Meteorology, precipitation (also known as one class of hydrometeors, which are atmospheric water phenomena is any product of the condensation of atmospheric Interception, or canopy interception, refers to precipitation that does not reach the soil but is instead intercepted by the leaves and branches of plants Surface runoff is a term used to describe when soil is infiltrated to full capacity and excess Water, from Rain, Snowmelt, or other sources flows Infiltration is the process by which water on the ground surface enters the Soil. Water content or moisture content is the quantity of Water contained in a material such as Soil (called soil moisture) rock, Transpiration is the Evaporation of water from the aerial parts of Plants especially leaves but also stems Flowers and Roots Plant litter (sometimes called leaf litter or tree litter) is dead Plant material such as leaves, Bark, and Twigs

As a result, the presence or absence of trees can change the quantity of water on the surface, in the soil or groundwater, or in the atmosphere. This in turn changes erosion rates and the availability of water for either ecosystem functions or human services.

The forest may have little impact on flooding in the case of large rainfall events, which overwhelm the storage capacity of forest soil if the soils are at or close to saturation.

Soil erosion

Undisturbed forest has very low rates of soil loss, approximately 0. 02 metric tons or 40 lbs per hectare. Deforestation generally increases rates of soil erosion, by increasing the amount of runoff and reducing the protection of the soil from tree litter. Erosion is the carrying away or displacement of solids ( Sediment, Soil, rock and other particles usually by the agents of currents such as wind RUNOFF was the first Computer Text formatting program to see significant use This can be an advantage in excessively leached tropical rain forest soils. Forestry operations themselves also increase erosion through the development of roads and the use of mechanized equipment.

China's Loess Plateau was cleared of forest millennia ago. The Loess Plateau ( also known as the Huangtu Plateau is a Plateau that covers an area of some 640000 km² in the upper and middle of China 's Since then it has been eroding, creating dramatic incised valleys, and providing the sediment that gives the Yellow River its yellow color and that causes the flooding of the river in the lower reaches (hence the river's nickname 'China's sorrow').

Removal of trees does not always increase erosion rates. In certain regions of southwest US, shrubs and trees have been encroaching on grassland. The trees themselves enhance the loss of grass between tree canopies. The bare intercanopy areas become highly erodible. The US Forest Service, in Bandelier National Monument for example, is studying how to restore the former ecosystem, and reduce erosion, by removing the trees.

Landslides

Tree roots bind soil together, and if the soil is sufficiently shallow they act to keep the soil in place by also binding with underlying bedrock. Bedrock is the native consolidated rock underlying the surface of a terrestrial planet usually the Earth. Tree removal on steep slopes with shallow soil thus increases the risk of landslides, which can threaten people living nearby. A landslide is a geological phenomenon which includes a wide range of ground movement such as rock falls deep failure of slopes and shallow debris flows which can occur However most deforestation only affects the trunks of trees, allowing for the roots to stay rooted, negating the landslide.

Controlling deforestation

Farming

New methods are being developed to farm more intensively, such as high-yield hybrid crops, greenhouse, autonomous building gardens, and hydroponics. In Biology, hybrid has two meanings The first meaning is the result of interbreeding between two animals or plants of different taxa. A greenhouse (also called a glasshouse or hothouse) is a building where plants are cultivated An autonomous building is a building designed to be operated independently from infrastructural support services such as the Electric power grid municipal water systems Hydroponics (from the Greek words hydro (water and ponos (labour is a method of growing Plants using mineral Nutrient solutions without These methods are often dependent on massive chemical inputs to maintain necessary yields. In cyclic agriculture, cattle are grazed on farm land that is resting and rejuvenating. Agriculture refers to the production of goods through the growing of plants and fungi and the raising of domesticated Animals The study of agriculture Cyclic agriculture actually increases the fertility of the soil. Intensive farming can also decrease soil nutrients by consuming at an accelerated rate the trace minerals needed for crop growth.

Forest management

Efforts to stop or slow deforestation have been attempted for many centuries because it has long been known that deforestation can cause environmental damage sufficient in some cases to cause societies to collapse. In Tonga, paramount rulers developed policies designed to prevent conflicts between short-term gains from converting forest to farmland and long-term problems forest loss would cause,^[45] while during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries in Tokugawa Japan^[46] the shoguns developed a highly sophisticated system of long-term planning to stop and even reverse deforestation of the preceding centuries through substituting timber by other products and more efficient use of land that had been farmed for many centuries. The Kingdom of Tonga is an Archipelago in the south Pacific Ocean comprising 169 islands 36 of them inhabited stretching over a distance of about 800 kilometres (500 miles The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the, and the, was a feudal regime of Japan established by Tokugawa Ieyasu and ruled by the Shoguns of For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. In sixteenth century Germany landowners also developed silviculture to deal with the problem of deforestation. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. However, these policies tend to be limited to environments with good rainfall, no dry season and very young soils (through volcanism or glaciation). Soil, often typeset as SOiL, is a four piece rock band from Chicago Illinois United States founded by Shaun Glass Tom Schofield Tim King and Adam Zadel Plate tectonics and hotspots Divergent plate boundaries At the "Glacial" and "Glaciation" redirect here For the geological periods see Glacial period. This is because on older and less fertile soils trees grow too slowly for silviculture to be economic, whilst in areas with a strong dry season there is always a risk of forest fires destroying a tree crop before it matures.

Reforestation

In the People's Republic of China, where large scale destruction of forests has occurred, the government has in the past required that every able-bodied citizen between the ages of 11 and 60 plant three to five trees per year or do the equivalent amount of work in other forest services. Talk People's Republic of China) PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA ARTICLE GUIDELINES The government claims that at least 1 billion trees have been planted in China every year since 1982. This is no longer required today, but March 12 of every year in China is the Planting Holiday. In western countries, increasing consumer demand for wood products that have been produced and harvested in a sustainable manner are causing forest landowners and forest industries to become increasingly accountable for their forest management and timber harvesting practices. The Arbor Day Foundation's Rain Forest Rescue program is a charity that helps to prevent deforestation. The charity uses donated money to buy up and preserve rainforest land before the lumber companies can buy it. The Arbor Day Foundation then protects the land from deforestation. This also locks in the way of life of the primitive tribes living on the forest land. Organizations such as Community Forestry International, The Nature Conservancy, World Wide Fund for Nature, Conservation International, African Conservation Foundation and Greenpeace also focus on preserving forest habitats. The Nature Conservancy is a US charitable Environmental organization working to preserve the Plants, Animals, and natural communities Conservation International (CI is a nonprofit organization headquartered in the Washington D The African Conservation Foundation is working towards the protection and conservation of Africa 's Endangered Wildlife and their habitats Greenpeace, originally known as the Greenpeace Foundation, was founded in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada in 1972

Forest plantations

To meet the worlds demand for wood it has been suggested by forestry writers Botkins and Sedjo that high-yielding forest plantations are suitable. Roger A Sedjo is an Economist and senior fellow and director of Resources for the Future. Fundamentally a plantation is usually a large Farm or estate, especially in a tropical or semitropical country on which Cotton, Tobacco It has been calculated that plantations yielding 10 cubic meters per hectare annually could supply all the timber required for international trade on 5 percent of the world's existing forestland. By contrast natural forests produce about 1-2 cubic meters per hectare, therefore 5 to 10 times more forest land would be required to meet demand. Forester Chad Oliver has suggested a forest mosaic with high-yield forest lands interpersed with conservation land. ^[47]

The Jewish National Fund states that the only country to come out of the Twentieth Century with more trees than it had at the start of the period was Israel. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Israel topics. ^[48]

Military context

American Sherman tanks knocked out by Japanese artillery on Okinawa. World War II foreign variants and use Lend-Lease Sherman tanks.

While the preponderance of deforestat is due to demands for agricultural and urban use for the human population, there are some examples of military causes. One example of deliberate deforestation is that which took place in the U.S. zone of occupation in Germany after World War II. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The Allied powers who defeated Nazi Germany in World War II divided the country west of the Oder-Neisse line into four occupation zones for administrative Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Before the onset of the Cold War defeated Germany was still considered a potential future threat rather than potential future ally. Cold War is the state of conflict tension and competition that existed between the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR and their respective allies from the To address this threat, attempts were made to lower German industrial potential, of which forests were deemed an element. The Level of Industry plans for Germany were the effected Allied plans to lower and control German industrial potential after World War II. Sources in the U. S. government admitted that the purpose of this was the "ultimate destruction of the war potential of German forests. " As a consequence of the practice of clear-felling, deforestation resulted which could "be replaced only by long forestry development over perhaps a century. "^[49]

War can also be a cause of deforestation, either deliberately such as through the use of Agent Orange[3] during the Vietnam War where, together with bombs and buldozers, it contributed to the destruction of 44 percent of the forest cover,^[50] or inadvertently such as in the 1945 Battle of Okinawa where bombardment and other combat operations reduced the lush tropical landscape into "a vast field of mud, lead, decay and maggots". War is an international relations Dispute, characterized by organized Violence between National Military units Agent Orange is the code name for a powerful Herbicide and Defoliant used by the U The Vietnam War, also known as the Second Indochina War, or the Vietnam Conflict, occurred in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia The Battle of Okinawa, also known as Operation Iceberg, was fought on the Ryukyu Islands of Okinawa and was the largest amphibious assault ^[51]

References

General references

• BBC 2005 TV series on the history of geological factors shaping human history (name?)
• A Natural History of Europe - 2005 co-production including BBC and ZDF
• Whitney, Gordon G. (1996). From Coastal Wilderness to Fruited Plain : A History of Environmental Change in Temperate North America from 1500 to the Present. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge University Press (known colloquially as CUP is a Publisher given a Royal Charter by Henry VIII in 1534 ISBN 0-521-57658-X
• Williams, Michael. (2003). Deforesting the Earth. University of Chicago Press, Chicago. ISBN 0-226-89926-8
• Wunder, Sven. (2000). The Economics of Deforestation: The Example of Ecuador. Macmillan Press, London. Macmillan Publishers Ltd, also known as The Macmillan Group, is a privately-held International Publishing company owned by Georg von Holtzbrinck ISBN 0-333-73146-8
• FAO&CIFOR report: Forests and Floods: Drowning in Fiction or Thriving on Facts?
• Fenical, William (September 1983). "Marine Plants: A Unique and Unexplored Resource", Plants: the potentials for extracting protein, medicines, and other useful chemicals (workshop proceedings). DIANE Publishing, 147. ISBN 1428923977.  

Ethiopia deforestation references

• Parry, J. (2003). Tree choppers become tree planters. Appropriate Technology, 30(4), 38-39. Retrieved November 22, 2006, from ABI/INFORM Global database. (Document ID: 538367341).
• Hillstrom, K & Hillstrom, C. (2003). Africa and the Middle east. A continental Overview of Environmental Issues. Santabarbara, CA: ABC CLIO.
• Williams, M. (2006). Deforesting the earth: From prehistory to global crisis: An Abridgment. Chicago: The university of Chicago Press.
• Mccann. J. C. (1990). A Great Agrarian cycle? Productivity in Highland Ethiopia, 1900 To 1987. Journal of Interdisciplinary History, xx: 3,389-416. Retrieved November 18, 2006, from JSTOR database.

See also

External links

• Prevent Deforestation
• Encyclopedia of Earth: Deforestation in Amazonia
• Global Forest Resources Assessment 2005 by the FAO Comprehensive assessment of forests and forestry. Assarting is the act of clearing Forested lands for use in Agriculture or other purposes The rise and fall of the Roman Empire encompasses the time when Rome was the leading contributor to Deforestation in the Mediterranean. Desertification is the degradation of land in arid and dry sub-humid areas resulting primarily from human activities and influenced by climatic variations Ecoforestry is Forestry that emphasizes Holistic practices which strive to protect and restore Ecosystems 1 rather than maximize Forestry is the Art and Science of managing forests tree Plantations and related Natural resources. Illegal logging is the harvest transportation purchase or sale of timber in violation of national Laws The harvesting procedure itself may be illegal including Land use, land-use change and Forestry (LULUCF all have impacts on the global Carbon cycle and as such these activities can add or remove Carbon dioxide In Hydrology, moisture recycling or precipitation recycling refer to the process by which a portion of the precipitated Water that evapotranspired Mountaintop removal mining ( MTR) often referred to in the industry as mountaintop mining/valley fills (MTM/VF is a form of Surface mining that involves an The Neolithic (from Greek νεολιθικός — neolithikos from νέος neos, "new" + λίθος lithos Rainforests are Forests characterized by high Rainfall with definitions setting minimum normal annual rainfall between 1750–2000 mm (68-78 inches Richard St Barbe Baker (1889-1982 was an English forester environmental activist and author who contributed greatly to worldwide Reforestation efforts Wilderness is generally defined as a Natural environment on Earth that has not been significantly modified by Human activity Includes 350 page report and 15 page summary
• United Nations EarthWatch
• EU Forestry.
• United Nations Forum on Forests
• CFAN - CIDA Forestry Advisory Network DEFORESTATION: Tropical Forests in Decline
• Amazon Deforestation (Google maps)
• Our disappearing forests - Greenpeace China

In the media

• March 14, 2007, Independent Online: Destruction of forests in developing world 'out of control'