Global tropical primary forest cover continued to decline unabated in 2022

July 10, 2023

General Studies Paper 3

CONTEXT

Tropical areas lost 4.1 million hectares of forest cover – equivalent to losing an area of 11 football fields per minute – in 2022, new research quoted by the World Resources Institute’s (WRI) Global Forest Watch has said.

THE PRIMARY FORESTS

Primary forests are mature, natural forests that have remained undisturbed in recent history.
They often store more carbon than other forests and are rich sources of biodiversity.
Primary forest loss is almost irreversible in nature: even if the green cover regrows, a secondary forest is unlikely to match the extent of biodiversity and carbon sequestering capabilities of a primary forest.
Rainforests are also called “Primary Forests” thanks to their pristine untouched vegetation because unaffected by any human activity.
As the population of the country grows, there is more demand for food, which in turn is leading to an expansion of area under agriculture and encroachment of land hosting primary forests.
Primary forests are burned for short-term cultivation and then left fallow for regeneration of soil nutrients.

DISTRIBUTION

Tropical rain forests can be found in Asia, Australia, Africa, South America, Central America, Mexico, and several Pacific Islands, all of which are around 28 degrees north or south of the equator.
They cover about 6-7 percent of the earth’s surface and are home to half of the planet’s biodiversity.
Brazil (South America), the Democratic Republic of Congo (Africa), and Indonesia are home to the world’s largest rainforests.
South America’s Amazon rainforest is the world’s largest, occupying an area almost two-thirds the size of the continental United States.

GLOBAL FOREST WATCH FINDINGS

According to Global Forest Watch, India lost 43.9 thousand hectares of humid primary forest between 2021 and 2022, which accounts for 17% of the country’s total tree cover loss in the period.
The total global tree cover loss in 2022 declined by 10%. This includes primary, secondary, and planted forests.
This decrease, according to Global Forest Watch, is a direct result of a decrease in fire-related forest losses which decreased 28% from 2021. Non-fire losses in 2022 increased by slightly less than 1%.
Brazil and the Democratic Republic of Congo are the two countries with the most tropical forest cover, and both registered losses of this resource in 2022.

SUGGESTIONS

We need to reduce global deforestation by at least 10% every year to meet the 2030 target. In 2022, although the global deforestation rate was 3.1% lower than the baseline from 2018-2020. This puts the world off track to meet the 2030 goal.
To meet the target of restoring 350 mha of forests globally by 2030, the world needs to increase tree cover by 22 mha per year, between 2021 and 2030.
Reducing deforestation will strengthen the resilience of the Amazon rainforest and safeguard its threatened areas.
The Brazilian government’s current administration is in the spotlight, and it is being urged to implement a zero-deforestation policy to change the situation.
Constructing knowledge about the role of trees in the Amazon ecosystem and creating awareness among students and youths of the importance of trees to the Amazon ecosystem.
To protect them, it is also necessary to limit global greenhouse gas emissions.
Corporates are required to follow corporate responsibility guidelines which bans them from taking part in endeavours that harm Amazon.

CONCLUSION

The solution of saving Tropical forests must be based on what is feasible, not overly idealistic, and depends on developing a conservation approach built on the principle of sustainable use and development of rainforests.