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Every year, 20 million hectares of rainforest — an area the size of England, Wales and Scotland combined — are cut down, releasing millions of tons of carbon emissions into the atmosphere.
Without action now, most of the world’s tropical forests will be lost by this century’s end, as will important species, natural resources, local livelihoods and the opportunity to slow climate change.
The Nature Conservancy is taking action. We’re incorporating innovative, market-oriented incentives for forest conservation and working with governments and industry to demonstrate the value of avoiding deforestation and its global consequences.
The Consequences of Destroying our Forests
- Climate Change: Trees and plants are essential to a stable climate. They help remove heat-trapping carbon dioxide gas from the air by storing it in their leaves, wood, roots and soils.
But when trees and plants are destroyed, this stored carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere, where it contributes to climate change. In fact, deforestation and land use change contributes approximately 20 to 25 percent of the carbon emissions that cause climate change. - Poverty: More than 1 billion people living in extreme poverty depend on forests for their water, fuel or livelihoods. The economic value of intact forests is much greater than the short-term benefits of logging or clearing land for agriculture.
- Loss of Species and Natural Resources: Tropical forests cover only 12 percent of the planet but are home to more than one-half of the Earth’s known plants and animal species. At the current rate of deforestation, tropical rain forests will virtually disappear as functioning ecosystems within 100 years. Deforestation also degrades important natural resources, like supplies of clean fresh water. In addition, the massive burning of forests can lead to severe air pollution both locally and thousands of miles away.
Creating Incentives to Stop Deforestation
Despite being the second leading contributor to carbon emissions, deforestation is not currently addressed in international climate treaties, and countries have few incentives for preserving their forests.
With no price put on the value of the carbon stored, forests are considered more valuable for timber, cropland, or pasture. But minimizing deforestation is a powerful tool in the global effort to combat climate change, especially for developing countries.
The Conservancy is focused on market-oriented approaches to forest conservation as part of a comprehensive climate change strategy that addresses all major sources of carbon emissions. We believe avoided deforestation represents an important opportunity in combating climate change, and we support the design of a scientific and policy framework to address the impacts of deforestation.
Taking Action to Reduce Deforestation Emissions
The Conservancy is conducting research around the world to measure the amount of carbon captured by forests. We also maintain several climate action projects in which we are measuring carbon storage and facilitating the sale of carbon “credits” to governments and businesses looking to offset their carbon emissions. For example, our Noel Kempff Climate Action Project in Bolivia is the first forest emissions reduction project to be fully certified using rigorous standards based on those in the Kyoto Protocol, the world’s largest legally binding emissions reduction agreement.
Through these carefully monitored projects, we demonstrate that forest restoration and conservation are viable vehicles to reduce emissions, protect ecosystems and enhance local communities. We then engage governments, businesses and other institutions to develop partnerships and policies that reward countries for preserving their forests.
Together, these projects have kept 17.5 million tons of carbon from entering the atmosphere over 30 years, equivalent to keeping 3.1 million cars of the road for one year.
- Rio Bravo, Belize
The Rio Bravo climate action project involves the conservation and sustainable management of more than 153,000 acres of forest in northwest Belize. - Noel Kempff, Bolivia
Through a unique partnership, this Nature project is helping protect 1.5 million acres of Noel Kempff Mercado National Park in northeastern Bolivia. - Guaraqueçaba Environmental Protection Area, Brazil
These projects seek to restore and protect approximately 50,000 acres of tropical forest within the Guaraqueçaba Environmental Protection Area in southern Brazil. - Midwest Forest Restoration, United States
The Midwestern forest restoration project involves the restoration of almost 1,000 acres of forest in Ohio and Indiana. It is estimated that the project will reduce, avoid or mitigate approximately 150,000 metric tons of CO2 equivalent over 40 years by bringing back native forests to this area. - Louisiana Bayou Pierre Floodplain, United States
In northwest Louisiana, The Nature Conservancy is working to bring a critical area of floodplain forest back to health after extensive clearing for agricultural production. With the support of PowerTree Carbon Company, 500 acres of farmland will be planted with bottomland hardwood seedlings and protected over the long term, creating an important connection between two existing natural refuges in the Bayou Pierre Floodplain. Because the trees will absorb carbon dioxide as they mature, this reforestation project also provides an important ecosystem service — carbon sequestration. The benefits of the project are twofold — forests not only contribute to a solution for global warming, but also create valuable habitat that sustains and protects the area's unique plants and animals. Learn more about our work in Louisiana.
Nature picture credits (top to bottom, left to right): Morning mist in East Kalimantan © Mark Godfrey/TNC; Nocturnal monkey in Ecuador © Andy Drumm; Chart © IPCC and Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center (global carbon dioxide emissions).
