spreads

Cutting
Season
secrets world’s of trees

Cutting
Season
secrets world’s of trees

03//
Cutting Season_Secrets World’s of Trees
Copyright
Copyright © 2010 by Wily E. Coyote
All rights reserved. This book or any
portion thereof may not be reproduced
or used in any manner whatsoever
without the express written permission
of the publisher except for the use of
brief quotations in a book review.
Printed in the United States of America
First Printing, 2020
ISBN 0-9000000-0-0
Falling Anvil Publishing
123 Mesa Street
Scottsdale, AZ 00000
www.FallingAnvilBooks.com

04//

PREFACE
Halting deforestation will require the
cooperation and coordination of the
world’s governments, businesses, and
civil society. Networks of activists are
now slowing the destruction of forest
areas, promoting sustainable farming
and ranching practices, and restoring
forest cover wherever possible. These
efforts will not only benefit both
human and forest well-being; but also
help mitigate climate change. ▼ AS
THE EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANCE
ARE FELT ACROSS THE globe, Earthconscious
innovators pursue a list of
technological wonders to offset our
species’ carbon footprint: geoengineering,
alternative energy, hybrid vehicles,
etc. Each techno-fix shows some potential
for success, and each might have
a role to play in years to come. ▼ But
let’s not forget one design feat that is
fully within our means to deploy here
and now: more trees. ▼ The efforts of
governments, businesses, and nonprofit
organizations everywhere have begun
to curb deforestation and bring some
hitherto-destroyed forest areas back
to life. As their efforts gain ground--
and they can, with more support from
citizens and communities worldwide-
-those trees will naturally reduce
atmospheric carbon and boost both
the planet’s health and ours. ▼ Global
Forest Health Today. Brazil hit a milestone
in 2012: Forest loss that year, at
4,500 square kilometers, was the lowest
since 1988--and a steep drop-off from
the 27,000 square kilometers of forest
cover that the country lost in 2004.

Depletion of the Amazon’s forest cover
had been widespread in the twentieth
century as Brazil developed economically:
The cleared forests made way
for logging, cattle ranching, and farming
of cash crops such as soybeans.
Then, starting in the late 1980s, the
government initiated measures to halt
deforestation; more recently, it committed
to bringing deforestation down
to less than a fifth of the 2004 level by
2020. As of 2013, it is almost 80% there.
▼ Conservationists keep pushing for
the forests’ viability over the long term.
Deforestation continues, even if it is
drastically reduced and no longer has
the tacit acceptance of government
and business leaders. ▼ “The situation
is not stable yet. We have to consider
we have a lot of achievements and good
results, but we still have high rates of
deforestation,” says Luis Fernando
Guedes Pinto, certification manager for
IMAFLORA, a Brazilian environmental
conservation nonprofit that partners
with the Rainforest Alliance. “We still
need many interventions that can lead
to improvements in farming and forest
management.” ▼ Concerns over Brazil’s
Amazon rain forests, which shrank
by about 18% in the last century due
to deforestation, have been growing
steadily in Brazil and worldwide: The
Amazon is home to between one-third
and one-half of the world’s remaining
tropical forest land.

07//
Cutting Season_Secrets World’s of Trees
Table of Contents
Contents

08//
1
- What Is Deforestation
- Deforestation facts
- Environmental Effects:
Atmospheric
Hydrological
Soil
Biodiversity
2
3
- Impacts of deforestation and forest degradation
Increased greenhouse gas emissions
Disruption of water cycles
Increased soil erosion
Disrupted livelihoods
- Ten Impacted Species
- Eight Impacted Places
- History of deforestation
- Modern Deforestation
- Regional deforestation trends
- Tropical forests’ lost decade: the 2010s

11//
Cutting Season_Secrets World’s of Trees
Introduction

12//
INTRODUCTION
Deforestation is the purposeful clearing of forested land.
Deforestation has greatly altered landscapes around
the world.
Deforestation is the permanent removal
of trees to make room for something
besides forest. This can include clearing
the land for agriculture or grazing, or
using the timber for fuel, construction
or manufacturing. ▼ Forests cover more
than 30% of the Earth’s land surface,
according to the World Wildlife Fund.
These forested areas can provide food,
medicine and fuel for more than a billion
people. Worldwide, forests provide
13.4 million people with jobs in the
forest sector, and another 41 million
people have jobs related to forests. ▼
Forests are a resource, but they are also
large, undeveloped swaths of land that
can be converted for purposes such
as agriculture and grazing. In North
America, about half the forests in the
eastern part of the continent were cut
down for timber and farming between
the 1600s and late 1800s, according to
National Geographic. ▼ Today, most
deforestation is happening in the tropics.
Areas that were inaccessible in the
past are now within reach as new roads
are constructed through the dense forests.
A 2017 report by scientists at the
University of Maryland showed that the
tropics lost about 61,000 square miles
(158,000 square kilometers) of forest in
2017 — an area the size of Bangladesh.

13//
Cutting Season_Secrets World’s of Trees Chapter 1
Exacerbate

Slash
14//
SL
ASH
01
- What Is Deforestation
- Deforestation facts
- Environmental Effects:
Atmospheric
Hydrological
Soil
Biodiversity

15//
Cutting Season_Secrets World’s of Trees
What is Deforestation?
WHAT IS DEFORESTATION?
Deforestation is the clearing, destroying, or otherwise removal of trees through deliberate, natural, or accidental
means. It can occur in any area densely populated by trees and other plant life, but the majority of it is currently
happening in the Amazon rainforest. ▼ The loss of trees and other vegetation can cause climate change,
desertification, soil erosion, fewer crops, flooding, increased greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, and a host of
problems for indigenous people. ▼ Deforestation occurs for a number of reasons, including farming, with 80%
of deforestation resulting from extensive cattle ranching, and logging for materials and development. It has been
happening for thousands of years, arguably since man began converting from hunter/gatherer to agricultural
based societies, and required larger, unobstructed tracks of land to accommodate cattle, crops, and housing. It
was only after the onset of the modern era that it became an epidemic.

Chapter 1
16//

17//
Cutting Season_Secrets World’s of Trees
Deforestation Facts

Chapter 1
18//
DEFORESTATION FACTS
Forests are cut down to clear land
for agriculture, livestock grazing, and
settlement; for timber; to produce charcoal;
and to establish tree plantations.
▼ Deforestation occurs across all forest
types, but is concentrated in the tropics
and boreal regions. Temperate regions
are experiencing a net increase in forest
cover due to natural regeneration. ▼
While deforestation produces food,
fiber, and fuel, it can also pose risks to
climate, biodiversity, and food security
by degrading the ecosystem services
normally afforded by healthy and productive
forests. ▼ There are different
ways to calculate deforestation. Using
the Food and Agriculture Organization
of the United Nations (FAO) estimate,
the countries with the highest area of
deforestation during the 2010s were
Brazil (18.9 million ha of net forest
conversion), the Democratic Republic
of the Congo (11M ha), Indonesia (8M
ha), Angola (5.6M ha), and Canada (4.5M ha). ▼ Scientists estimate that 80% of the planet’s terrestrial
species live in forests. Deforestation is therefore one of the biggest extinction risks to many species.

DEFORESTATION IS THE PERMANENT
REMOVAL OF TREES TO MAKE ROOM
FOR SOMETHING BESIDES FOREST. THIS
CAN INCLUDE CLEARING THE LAND FOR
AGRICULTURE OR GRAZING, OR USING
THE TIMBER FOR FUEL, CONSTRUCTION
OR MANUFACTURING. FORESTS COVER
MORE THAN 30% OF THE EARTH’S LAND
SURFACE, ACCORDING TO THE WORLD
WILDLIFE FUND. THESE FORESTED AREAS
CAN PROVIDE FOOD, MEDICINE AND FUEL
FOR MORE THAN A BILLION PEOPLE.
WORLDWIDE, FORESTS PROVIDE 13.4
MILLION PEOPLE WITH JOBS IN THE FOREST
SECTOR, AND ANOTHER 41 MILLION
PEOPLE HAVE JOBS RELATED TO FORESTS.
FORESTS ARE A RESOURCE, BUT THEY ARE
ALSO LARGE, UNDEVELOPED SWATHS OF
LAND THAT CAN BE CONVERTED FOR
PURPOSES SUCH AS AGRICULTURE AND
GRAZING. IN NORTH AMERICA, ABOUT
HALF THE FORESTS IN THE EASTERN PART

REASONS FORESTS ARE DESTROYED
The World Bank estimates that about 3.9 million square miles (10 million square km) of forest have been lost since the beginning of the 20th
century. In the past 25 years, forests shrank by 502,000 square miles (1.3 million square km) — an area bigger than the size of South Africa. In
2018, The Guardian reported that every second, a chunk of forest equivalent to the size of a soccer field is lost. ▼ Often, deforestation occurs
when forested area is cut and cleared to make way for agriculture or grazing. The Union of
Concerned Scientists (UCS) reports that just four commodities are responsible for tropical
deforestation: beef, soy, palm oil and wood products. UCS estimates that an area the size of
Switzerland (14,800 square miles, or 38,300 square km) is lost to deforestation every year.
▼ Natural fires in tropical forests tend to be rare but intense. Human-lit fires are commonly
used to clear land for agricultural use. First, valuable timber is harvested, then the remaining
vegetation is burned to make way for crops like soy or cattle grazing. In 2019, the number
of human-lit fires in Brazil skyrocketed. As of August 2019, more than 80,000 fires burned
in the Amazon, an increase of almost 80% from 2018, National Geographic reported.
Many forests are cleared to make way for palm oil plantations. Palm oil is the most commonly produced vegetable oil and is found in half of
all supermarket products. It’s cheap, versatile and can be added to both food and personal products like lipsticks and shampoo. Its popularity
has spurred people to clear tropical forests to grow more palm trees. Growing the trees that produce the oil requires the leveling of native
forest and the destruction of local peatlands — which doubles the harmful effect on the ecosystem. According to a report published by Zion
Market Research, the global palm oil market was valued at $65.73 billion in 2015 and is expected to reach $92.84 billion in 2021.

Forests can be found from the tropics to high-latitude areas. They are home to 80% of terrestrial biodiversity, containing a wide array
of trees, plants, animals and microbes, according to the World Bank, an international financial institution. Some places are especially
diverse — the tropical forests of New Guinea, for example, contain more than 6% of the world’s species of plants and animals.
▼ Forests provide more than a home
for a diverse collection of living things;
they are also an important resource for
many around the world. In countries
like Uganda, people rely on trees for
firewood, timber and charcoal. Over
the past 25 years, Uganda has lost 63%
of its forest cover, Reuters reported.
Families send children — primarily
girls — to collect firewood, and kids
have to trek farther and farther to get
to the trees. Collecting enough wood
often takes all day, so the children miss
school. ▼ According to a 2018 FAO
report, three-quarters of the Earth’s
freshwater comes from forested watersheds,
and the loss of trees can affect
water quality. The UN’s 2018 State of
the World’s Forests report found that
over half the global population relies on
forested watersheds for their drinking
water as well as water used for agriculture
and industry. ▼ Related: The
Latest Deforestation News Stories ▼
Deforestation in tropical regions can
also affect the way water vapor is produced
over the canopy, which causes
reduced rainfall. A 2019 study published
in the journal Ecohydrology showed
that parts of the Amazon rainforest
that were converted to agricultural land
had higher soil and air temperatures,
which can exacerbate drought conditions.
In comparison, forested land
had rates of evapotranspiration that
were about three times higher, adding
more water vapor to the air. ▼ Trees
also absorb carbon dioxide, mitigating
greenhouse gas emissions produced
by human activity. As climate change
continues, trees play an important role
in carbon sequestration, or the capture
and storage of excess carbon dioxide.
Tropical trees alone are estimated
to provide about 23% of the climate
mitigation that’s needed to offset climate
change, according to the World
Resources Institute, a nonprofit global
research institute.
EFFECTS OF DEFORESTATION

“Whoever has
learned how
to listen to
trees no longer
wants to be a
tree. He wants
to be nothing
except what
he is. That is
home. That is
happiness.”

25//
Cutting Season_Secrets World’s of Trees
List of Causes
DRIVERS OF DEFOREST
FARTHER REMOVED HO
CORRUPTION, GOVERNA
CAN ALL BE IMPORTANT
A FOREST GETS DESTROY

Chapter 1
26//
ATION CAN BE EVEN
WEVER. FOR EXAMPLE,
NCE, AND LAND RIGHTS
FACTORS IN WHETHER
ED.
LIST OF CAUSES
CAUSES OF DEFORESTATION ▼
Clear-cutting for logging and pulpwood
▼ Forest conversion for permanent agriculture
(palm oil plantations, soybean
fields) ▼ Large-scale shifting cultivation
(i.e. slash-and-burn) where forest is not
permitted to regenerate due to subsequent
clearing ▼ Forest conversion for
permanent pasture ▼ Open pit mining
and large-scale mining operations ▼
Clear-cutting for charcoal production
▼ Large roads and infrastructure
projects ▼ Wildfires that destroy the
forest canopy ▼ Dam construction ▼
Chemical defoliants ▼ Urban expansion
► CAUSES OF DEGRADATION ▼
Most forms of logging for timber harvesting,
especially “selective logging”
▼ Small-scale shifting cultivation (i.e.
slash-and-burn) ▼ Over-grazing ▼
Small scale mining and associated pollution
▼ Over-harvesting for fuel wood
▼ Fragmentation from small roads ▼
Understory fires that leave canopy
trees intact ▼ Over-harvesting of nonwood
forest products (medicinal plants,
foods, fibers) ▼ Over-hunting ▼ Invasive
species ▼ Oil pollution ▼ Storm damage
▼ Extreme drought ▼ Air pollution and
acid rain

27//
Cutting Season_Secrets World’s of Trees Chapter 2

Threat
28//
TH
REAT
02
- Impacts of deforestation and forest
degradation
Increased greenhouse gas emissions
Disruption of water cycles
Increased soil erosion
Disrupted livelihoods
- Ten Impacted Species
- Eight Impacted Places

29//
Cutting Season_Secrets World’s of Trees
Impacts
IMPACTS
INCREASED GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS ▼ Forests
are carbon sinks and, therefore, help to mitigate the
emission of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
Tropical forests alone hold more than 228 to 247 gigatons
of carbon, which is more than seven times the amount
emitted each year by human activities. ▼ But when forests
are cut, burned or otherwise removed they emit carbon
instead of absorb carbon. Deforestation and forest degradation
are responsible for around 15% of all greenhouse gas
emissions. These greenhouse gas emissions contribute to
rising temperatures, changes in patterns of weather and
water, and an increased frequency of extreme weather
events. For example, in Sumatra, rainforests on deep peatlands
are being cleared, drained and converted to pulp
plantations, contributing to Indonesia’s high greenhouse
gas emissions. Changes in climate can affect forest-dwelling
creatures by altering their habitats and decreasing
availability of food and water. Some will be able to adapt
by moving to higher elevations or latitudes, but species
losses may occur. ► DISRUPTED OF WATER CYCLES ▼
Trees play a key role in the local water cycle by helping
to keep a balance between the water on land and water
in the atmosphere. But when deforestation or degradation
occurs, that balance can be thrown off, resulting in
changes in precipitation and river flow. ► DISRUPTED
LIVELIHOODS ▼ 1.25 billion people around the world
rely on forests for shelter, livelihoods, water, fuel, and food
security. And 750 million people (approximately one-fifth
of total rural population) live in forests. This includes
60 million indigenous
people. But deforestation
disrupts the lives
of these people, sometimes
with devastating
consequences. In the
Greater Mekong in
Southeast Asia, where
land tenure systems
are weak, deforestation
has contributed to
social conflict remote
soy plantations where
they may be abused
and forced, at gunpoint,
to work under
inhumane conditions.

Chapter 2
30//
and migration. In Brazil, poor people have been lured from their villages to remote soy plantations where they
may be abused and forced, at gunpoint, to work under inhumane conditions. ► INCREASED SOIL EROSION ▼
Without trees to anchor fertile soil, erosion can occur and sweep the land into rivers. The agricultural plants that
often replace the trees cannot hold onto the soil. Many of these plants—such as coffee, cotton, palm oil, soybean
and wheat—can actually exacerbate soil erosion. Scientists have estimated that a third of the world’s arable land
has been lost through soil erosion and other types of degradation since 1960. And as fertile soil washes away,
agricultural producers move on, clearing more forest and continuing the cycle of soil loss.

IMPACTED SPECIES
AMUR LEOPARD ▼ There are still large
tracts of suitable habitat left across the
Amur in Russia and China. In China the
prey base is insufficient to sustain large
populations of leopards and tigers. Prey
populations will recover if measures
are taken to limit the poaching of prey
species and the forests are managed for
logging more sustainably. For the Amur
leopard to survive for the long term, it
needs to repopulate its former range.
But for that to happen, prey populations
need to recover first. ► ASIAN
ELEPHANT ▼ The illegal capture of
wild elephants and elephant calves
for various purposes, such as tourism,
has become a threat to some wild
populations, significantly affecting
population numbers. India, Vietnam,
and Myanmar have banned capture in
order to conserve their wild herds, but
illegal captures still occur in a number
of countries where elephants live. ►
Bonobo ▼ Civil unrest in the region
around the bonobo’s home territory has
led to many bonobo deaths, as gangs
of poachers have been free to invade
Salonga National Park, one of few protected
areas for bonobos. In addition,
unrest has made modern weaponry and
ammunition more available, enabling
hunting, and the military has at times
sanctioned the hunting and killing
of bonobos. ► Giant Panda ▼ China’s
Yangtze Basin region holds the panda’s
primary habitat. Infrastructure development (such as dams, roads, and railways) is increasingly fragmenting
and isolating panda populations, preventing pandas from finding new bamboo forests and potential mates.

Trees exhale for us so that we
can inhale them to stay alive.
an we ever forget that? Let us
love trees with every breath we

orests can be found from the
tropics to high-latitude areas.
hey are home to 80% of
terrestrial biodiversity,
containing a wide array of trees,
plants, animals and microbes,
according to the World Bank,
an international financial
institution..”

CONTUNE
IMPACTED SPECIES
GORILLA ▼ Only 17% of the gorilla
population currently lives in protected
regions, and vast areas of gorilla forest
has already been lost. That destruction
continues as logging companies
open up fast tracks of forest, forests
are cleared to make space for subsistence
farming or ape habitat becomes
fragmented by road building. ▼ There
is also a strong link between habitat
loss and the bushmeat trade. As previously
inaccessible forests are opened
up by timber companies, commercial
hunters gain access to areas where
gorillas roam and often use logging
vehicles to transport bushmeat to far
away markets, as well as sell meat to
employees of the logging companies. ►
ORANGUTAN ▼ The habitats of Asia’s
only great apes are fast disappearing
under the chainsaw to make way for oil
palm plantations and other agricultural
plantations. Illegal logging inside protected
areas and unsustainable logging
in concessions where orangutans live
remains a major threat to their survival.
Today, more than 50% of orangutans are
found outside protected areas in forests
under management by timber, palm
oil and mining companies. ► RHINO
▼ As economic development, changes
in grassland composition, logging, and
agriculture degrade and destroy wildlife
habitats, rhino populations are declining. Those remaining rhinos live in fragmented, isolated areas and
are prone to inbreeding, as healthy genetic mixing is more difficult among smaller groups. Also, having a
large population confined to one protected area can lead to the allele effect where breeding is depressed
due to lack of resources and disease can spread rapidly through these highly-concentrated populations.

IMPACTED PLACES
► AMAZON ▼ Amazon forests suffer as global demand for products such as beef and soy increases. Forests are
cleared for more and more cattle grazing pasture and cropland. These growing industries also displace small
farmers, forcing them into forested areas which they must clear to sustain themselves. ►AMUR-HEILONG ▼
Dams, pollution, and habitat destruction
all threaten the health of the
Amur-Heilong Basin. In addition to
local pressures, this fragile ecosystem
is imperiled by the international
demand for timber, energy and animal
products. Recent climatic trends are
reshaping migration routes and alternating
weather patterns that impact
the health of local wildlife. ►BORNEO
AND SUMATRA ▼ Indonesia is home
to approximately three percent of the
world’s forests. Yet deforestation in
this region represents over a third of
the total global carbon emissions from
deforestation and land degradation.
Heavy demand for plywood, hardwoods,
and wood products for the pulp
and paper industry leads to both legal
and illegal logging. ► CONGO BASIN ▼
The leading cause of wildlife loss in the
Congo Basin is the commercial bushmeat
trade, driven by an ever increasing
market. In the DRC alone, over a million
tons of bushmeat are consumed
each year. ▼ Alarmingly, this lucrative
business is causing the forest to become
empty of species. Animals like monkeys
and antelope are common targets,
although species such as gorillas and
bonobos are also at risk.
► GREATER MEKONG ▼ The Greater Mekong is one of the most vulnerable places on earth to the impacts of climate change, which
compounds existing and projected threats. It impacts the region’s people, biodiversity and natural resources with cascading effects.
Water scarcity, for example, leads to reduced agricultural productivity, leading to food scarcity, unemployment and poverty. Across
the region, temperatures have risen and continue to rise. Sea level rise is threatening the region’s coastal communities. Degradation of
ecosystems from climate change will decrease their productivity and capacity to provide livelihoods for people of the Greater Mekong.

Monthly Deforestation Alerts In The Brazilian Amazon Since Jan 2015 (sq km)
2200
2000
1800
1600
1400
1200
1000
800
600
400
200
0
1/1/15
4/1/15
7/1/15
10/1/15
1/1/16
4/1/16
7/1/16
10/1/16
1/1/17
4/1/17
7/1/17
10/1/17
1/1/18
4/1/18
7/1/18
10/1/18
1/1/19
4/1/19
7/1/19
DETER TTM avg
SAD TTM avg

39//
Cutting Season_Secrets World’s of Trees
Impacts
CONTUNE
IMPACTED PLACES
MADAGASCAR ▼ The small-scale
but widespread clearance of forests,
primarily for firewood and charcoal
production, is jeopardizing the island’s
habitats. As a result, several charismatic
species such as lemurs and chameleons
that evolved here over millions of years
may become extinct before the end of
the century. ► SOUTHERN CHILE ▼
Globalization and its effects are taking
an extreme toll on the region’s health.
Weak regulatory and government
enforcement capacity mean there is
little defense against aggressive commercial
development in the region.
Unsustainable logging and conversion
of habitat to plantations of pine and
eucalyptus—used to create wood chips
for export—have dramatically reduced
native forest cover. ► YANGTZE ▼ The
Yangtze River Basin is faced with enormous
environmental challenges arising
from population pressure and rapid
economic development. In the last 50
years, the population has more than
doubled, with the heaviest concentrations
along the river. The economic
boom led by rapidly expanding industry,
sprawling cities, infrastructure
development, and mineral extraction
is having a major impact on the biodiversity
and ecosystems in the region.
► AMUR-HEILONG ▼ While poaching
has declined in recent years thanks to enforcement efforts, enthusiasm for traditional Chinese medicine still
feeds a booming wildlife trade in products such as bear gall bladder, tiger paw and ginseng.

Chapter 2
40//
EIGHT
IMPACTED
PLACES

41//
Cutting Season_Secrets World’s of Trees Chapter Opening 3

Exacerbate
42//
EXA
CERB
ATE03
- History of deforestation
- Modern Deforestation
- Regional deforestation trends
- Tropical forests’ lost decade: the 2010s

HISTORY
Conversion of forests to land used
for other purposes has a long history.
Earth’s croplands, which cover about 49
million square km (18.9 million square
miles), are mostly deforested land. Most
present-day croplands receive enough
rain and are warm enough to have
once supported forests of one kind or
another. Only about 1 million square
km (390,000 square miles) of cropland
are in areas that would have been
cool boreal forests, as in Scandinavia
and northern Canada. Much of the
remainder was once moist subtropical
or tropical forest or, in eastern North
America, western Europe, and eastern
China, temperate forest. ▼ The extent
to which forests have become Earth’s
grazing lands is much more difficult
to assess. Cattle or sheep pastures in
North America or Europe are easy to
identify, and they support large numbers
of animals. At least 2 million
square km (772,204 square miles) of
such forests have been cleared for grazing
lands. Less certain are the humid
tropical forests and some drier tropical
woodlands that have been cleared for
grazing. These often support only very
low numbers of domestic grazing animals,
but they may still be considered
grazing lands by national authorities.
Almost half the world is made up of
“drylands”—areas too dry to support
large numbers of trees—and most are
considered grazing lands. There, goats,
sheep, and cattle may harm what few
trees are able to grow. ▼ Although
most of the areas cleared for crops and
grazing represent permanent and continuing
deforestation, deforestation
can be transient. About half of eastern
North America lay deforested in
the 1870s, almost all of it having been
deforested at least once since European
colonization in the early 1600s. Since
the 1870s the region’s forest cover has
increased, though most of the trees
are relatively young. Few places exist
in eastern North America that retain
stands of uncut old-growth forests.

THE WORLD BANK ESTIMATES THAT ABOUT
3.9 MILLION SQUARE MILES (10 MILLION
SQUARE KM) OF FOREST HAVE BEEN LOST
SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THE 20TH
CENTURY. IN THE PAST 25 YEARS, FORESTS
SHRANK BY 502,000 SQUARE MILES (1.3
MILLION SQUARE KM) — AN AREA BIGGER
THAN THE SIZE OF SOUTH AFRICA. IN 2018,
THE GUARDIAN REPORTED THAT EVERY
SECOND, A CHUNK OF FOREST EQUIVALENT
TO THE SIZE OF A SOCCER FIELD IS LOST.
OFTEN, DEFORESTATION OCCURS WHEN
FORESTED AREA IS CUT AND CLEARED
TO MAKE WAY FOR AGRICULTURE OR
GRAZING. THE UNION OF CONCERNED
SCIENTISTS (UCS) REPORTS THAT JUST
FOUR COMMODITIES ARE RESPONSIBLE
FOR TROPICAL DEFORESTATION: BEEF,
SOY, PALM OIL AND WOOD PRODUCTS.
UCS ESTIMATES THAT AN AREA THE
SIZE OF SWITZERLAND (14,800 SQUARE
MILES, OR 38,300 SQUARE KM) IS LOST TO

MODERN DEFORESTATION
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that the annual rate of deforestation is about 1.3 million square km
per decade, though the rate has slowed in some places in the early 21st century as a result of enhanced forest management practices and the
establishment of nature preserves. The greatest deforestation is occurring in the tropics, where a wide variety of forests exists. They range
from rainforests that are hot and wet year-round to forests that are merely humid and
moist, to those in which trees in varying proportions lose their leaves in the dry season,
and to dry open woodlands. Because boundaries between these categories are inevitably
arbitrary, estimates differ regarding how much deforestation has occurred in the tropics. ▼
A major contributor to tropical deforestation is the practice of slash-and-burn agriculture,
or swidden agriculture (see also shifting agriculture). Small-scale farmers clear forests by
burning them and then grow crops in the soils fertilized by the ashes. Typically, the land
produces for only a few years and then must be abandoned and new patches of forest
burned. Fire is also commonly used to clear forests in Southeast Asia, tropical Africa, and
the Americas for permanent oil palm plantations.
Additional human activities that contribute to tropical deforestation include commercial logging and land clearing for cattle ranches and
plantations of rubber trees, oil palm, and other economically valuable trees. ▼ The Amazon Rainforest is the largest remaining block of humid
tropical forest, and about two-thirds of it is in Brazil. (The rest lies along that country’s borders to the west and to the north.)

restation is the cleardestroying,
or otherwise
oval of trees through
erate, natural, or
dental means. It can
r in any area densely
ulated by trees and other

49//
Cutting Season_Secrets World’s of Trees Chapter Opening 3
TROPICAL FORESTS’ LOST DECADE THE 2010S
The 2010s opened as a moment of optimism for tropical forests. Widely available satellite imagery via platforms
like Google Earth brought new levels of accountability which, for the first time, meant the world couldn’t use
ignorance as an excuse for not addressing the destruction of tropical forests. Deforestation in Earth’s largest
rainforest — the Brazilian Amazon — was in the midst of a historic plunge, while governments around the
world were pledging billions of dollars in new money toward a mechanism to compensate tropical countries for
protecting their forests. Several countries closed out the decade with important new conservation initiatives,
while activists, empowered with a new set of tools, pushed the private sector to begin adopting a new type
of sustainability commitment: the zero deforestation policy for commodity production and sourcing. Some
of the largest consumer-facing companies adopted these forest-friendly policies with near-term implementation
targets. The world looked like it was on track to significantly reduce tropical deforestation by 2020.

Exacerbate
50//
By the end of the 2019, however, it
was clear that progress on protecting
tropical forests stalled in the 2010s. On
the climate front, a decade of science
has mostly confirmed what we already
knew 10 years ago: Tropical forests
are deeply threatened by the current
pace of climate change. Combined
with ongoing deforestation, degradation,
and fragmentation, the outlook
for some of the planet’s largest forests,
from the Amazon to Indonesia,
is increasingly bleak. The 2010s were
also marked by mixed progress for
tropical forest conservation. Advances
in remote sensing were undercut by
backsliding on corporate and government
commitments to protect forests.
Gains in new protected areas were
partially offset by a trend toward protected
area downgrading, downsizing
and degazettement (PADDD) in countries
from Brazil to Indonesia. Efforts
to recognize the value of healthy and
productive natural forests were confronted
with the challenging realities
of implementation, public indifference
and the punishing economics of rising
demand for food, fiber and fuel in the
context of unaccounted costs of environmental
externalities.

51//
Cutting Season_Secrets World’s of Trees
Trends in Tropical Forests

Chapter 3
TREND IN TROPICAL FORESTS
The 2010s opened with a concerted
push to reduce tropical deforestation by
2020 as a way to achieve multiple objectives,
including combatting climate
change, stabilizing forest-dependent
livelihoods and ecosystem services, and
slowing species extinction rates. That
ambition, however, failed to meet its
most basic target: Deforestation in the
2010s far outpaced the rate of forest
loss in the 2000s, rising at least 30%,
according to two datasets developed
by a team lead by Matthew Hansen of
the University of Maryland. ▼ Hansen’s
data shows that tropical tree cover loss
between 2010 and 2018 averaged 12 million
hectares per year, an increase from
8.5 million hectares per year from 2002-
2009. Tree cover loss, however, includes
both deforestation and activities within
tree plantations, like cyclical harvesting
and replanting. As a result, it is not a
complete indicator of what’s happening
in tropical forests, especially in countries
like Malaysia and Indonesia that
have large industrial plantation sectors.
Therefore, Hansen’s data on primary
forests, which excludes plantations,
is a useful proxy for providing more
context on tropical forest trends.“drylands”—areas
too dry to support large
numbers of trees—and most are considered
grazing lands. There, goats, sheep,
and cattle may harm what few trees are
able to grow.

53//
Cutting Season_Secrets World’s of Trees Chapter Opening 3
THE 2010S CLOSED
WITH RISING
DEFORESTATION
AND INCREASED
INCIDENCE OF FIRE IN
TROPICAL FORESTS.

Exacerbate
DRIVERS OF DEFORESTATION
Commodity production on tropical forest lands continued to rise through the 2010s despite global stagnation in commodity prices in
the second half of the decade. Accordingly, a relatively limited number of export-oriented commodities — cattle, palm oil, soy, timber
and wood pulp — accounted for an outsize share of deforestation in the tropics. ▼ The cattle sector is the single largest direct driver of
tropical deforestation globally due to its
outsize footprint in the Amazon. At the
end of the last decade, major Brazilian
slaughterhouses signed a “cattle agreement”
brokered by Greenpeace, which
endeavored to clean up the sector. But
widespread cheating — and a large
clandestine market — limited the
effectiveness of the pact. Substantial
amounts of deforestation for cattle pasture
also shifted from the Amazon to
adjacent dry forests and wooded savannas
like the Chaco and Cerrado biomes.
And although the end of the 2010s saw a
surge in interest in meat alternatives in
the United States, global beef consumption
continued to rise with growing
levels of affluence. ▼ Palm oil arguably
attracted the most attention among
tropical commodities during the decade
for its rapid expansion and the heavy
toll it is taking on some of the world’s
most endangered forests and wildlife,
especially in Southeast Asia. Although
palm oil prices have been depressed
since 2012, the crop still represents the
most profitable form of agricultural
land use in many countries. As a result,
oil palm expansion was larger in the
2010s than in the 2000s. Asia added
nearly 4 million hectares of plantations
between 2010 and 2017, accounting
for nearly 90% of expansion over the
period. Pressure from environmental
groups and importing governments
— for example, the EU via renewable
fuels mandates — prompted many of
the largest companies operating in the
palm oil sector to adopt zero deforestation,
zero peat and zero exploitation
(ZDPE) policies in the first.
54//

INDEX
abaxial
abscission
abscissile
acaulescent
achene
actinomorphic
aculeate
acuminate
acute
adaxial
adherent
adnate
adpressed
adventitious
2
3
5
8
3
6
9
1
5
7
6
7
4
15
A
12
23
35
28
13
26
19
1
5
32
6
37
4
15
B
barbate
barbellae
basal
beak
berry
biconvex
biennial
bifoliolate
bipinnate
bipinnatisect
biserrate
bisexual
biternate
blade
12
23
35
28
13
26
19
C
caducous
caespitose
calcareous
callus
callosity
calyptra
calyx
12
23
35
28
13
26
19
1
5
32
6
37
4
15
23
14
D
decorticate
decumbent
decurrent
decussate
deflexed
dehiscent
dendritic
dentate
denticulate
depressed
dichasium
dichotomous
digitate
dimorphic
dioecious
disc
Cutting Season_Secrets World’s of Trees
Index
55//

32
43
3
28
13
26
19
1
5
32
6
37
4
15
23
14
24
15
47
F
falcate
fascicle
ferruginous
fertile
filament
filiform
fimbriate
fringed
flaccid
flexuose
floccose
floral tube
floret
flower
foliar
foliolate
foliose
follicle
forb
43
14
15
26
16
18
19
1
5
G
gametophyte
geophyte
gilgai
glabrescent
glabrous
gland
glaucous
globular
glume
H
habit
halophyte
halophytic
hastate
herb
4
7
9
28
13
26
17
18
15
28
29
4
28
9
32
6
I
imbricate
imparipinnate
incised
included
incurved
indefinite
indehiscent
indumentum
indurate
indusium
inferior
29
14
J
jugate
juvenile
19
30
K
kaoli
keel
26
19
1
5
32
6
37
4
15
23
14
24
15
47
L
labellum
laciniate
lamina
lanate
lanceolate
laterite
latex
latrorse
leaflet
lemma
lenticel
lenticular
liane
lignotuber
28
13
26
19
1
5
32
6
37
4
15
23
14
V
valvate
valve
variant
variegate
variety
vein
velum
velutinous
venation
vernation
verrucose
verticillate
vesicle
56//

57//
Cutting Season_Secrets World’s of Trees
Colophon
This book was designed by Xiaoli
Guo. It was edited and set into type in
the United States. The publisher and
author named in the book are fictitions
use only.
The text is set in Calluna Serif. The
headings are set in Calluna Sans. The
table of contents are set in Mulish.
Paper used in the book is Epson
Presentation Paper Matte 3 stars.
The written content is a compilation of
data taken from:
livescience.com
worldwildlife.org
britannica.com
pachamama.org
rainforests.mongabay.com
This is a student project only, produced
for a class assignment at the Academy of
Art University, located in San Francisco,
California. No part of the project was
produced for commerical use.

58//