Future of the Environment

Earth has more trees than it did 35 years ago - but there’s a huge catch

A rainbow is seen over a tract of Amazon rainforest which has been cleared by loggers and farmers for agriculture, near the city of Uruara, Para State April 22, 2013. The Amazon rainforest is being eaten away at by deforestation, much of which takes place as areas are burnt by large fires to clear land for agriculture. Initial data from Brazil's space agency suggests that destruction of the vast rainforest - the largest in the world - spiked by more than a third over the past year, wiping out an area more than twice the size of the city of Los Angeles. If the figures are borne out by follow-up data, they would confirm fears of scientists and environmental activists who warn that farming, mining and Amazon infrastructure projects, coupled with changes to Brazil's long-standing environmental policies, are reversing progress made against deforestation. Environmental issues will be under the spotlight as a United Nations Climate Change Conference opens in Warsaw, Poland on November 11. Picture taken on April 22, 2013. REUTERS/Nacho Doce (BRAZIL - Tags: ENVIRONMENT POLITICS SOCIETY AGRICULTURE TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY)ATTENTION EDITORS: PICTURE 53 OF 55 FOR PACKAGE 'AMAZON - FROM PARADISE TO INFERNO' TO FIND ALL IMAGES SEARCH 'AMAZON INFERNO'

But an important distinction needs to be made between tree cover and forest cover. Image: REUTERS/Nacho Doce

Johnny Wood
Writer, Forum Agenda
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Future of the Environment

South America suffered the biggest global canopy tree loss
Image: Nature via Pacific Standard

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Future of the EnvironmentForestsAgriculture, Food and Beverage
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