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The findings of the 2024 Forest Declaration Assessment indicated serious problems in global efforts to stop deforestation and forest damage.
Terrestrial and coastal ecosystems including savannas, grasslands, scrublands, and wetlands are all under threat of conversion and degradation. 2024 Forest Declaration Assessment has assessed these challenges in its detailed report.
In 2023, forests remained under massive pressure, which put the world’s climate, biodiversity, and forest goals under threat.
The world remains off track to reach the goals of halting and reversing deforestation and forest degradation by 2030. Globally, 6.37 million hectares of forest were permanently lost in 2023 as shown in Figure 1. Regional deforestation targets were missed in almost all tropical regions as shown in Figure 2.
Tropical Asia nearly met its interim target in 2022, but in 2023, deforestation in the region spiked again to 1.83 million hectares.
The extent of progress to eliminate deforestation in the world’s temperate and boreal regions varied in 2023 – but each of these regions was off track to meet its 2030 targets.
Outside the tropics, temperate Latin America and North America had the greatest absolute levels of deforestation.
Temperate Africa experienced a nearly six-fold increase in deforestation from 2018-20 baseline levels.
Gross emissions from deforestation, resulting from permanent tree cover loss, totalled 3.8 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent.
Primary forests are the most critical forest ecosystems to safeguard, yet they were destroyed at shocking rates last year.
The loss of the carbon stored in primary forests is irreversible in relevant time scales, as is the biodiversity they harbour. It can take hundreds or even thousands of years to re-establish the structures and the ecological functions that characterize a primary forest.
In 2023, the global rate of loss for the humid tropical primary forest was 38 per cent higher than necessary to be on track. However, some tropical countries advanced toward the goal of halting primary forest loss by 2030.
Still, the world’s progress in stopping the loss of these irreplaceable forests is vastly insufficient.
Short-term gains over long-term ecological health are the fundamental drivers of forest loss, and these models are deeply ingrained in the production and consumption systems.
Shifting agriculture caused 15.9 million hectares of primary forest loss from 2015-23. Though shifting agriculture can be practised sustainably as part of traditional, rotational land management systems, its impacts are detrimental when they lead to the clearing of primary forests.
Forest ecosystems are still under a great deal of stress due to the rising demand for a variety of commodities, such as minerals, agricultural products, and fossil fuels.
Seven agricultural commodities alone caused 57 per cent of all deforestation from 2001-18.3 Mining volumes from tropical moist forests doubled from 2000-19,4 with coal driving 34 percent of mining-induced deforestation that could be allocated to specific commodities from 2001-19.
Urbanization:
It has significant impacts on forests. It leads to the subsumption of natural forests, resulting in forest fragmentation and loss of habitat.
The populational shift that is leading people to move from rural areas to urban areas is also contributing to deforestation (5%, according to FAO). This urban growth – in which 68% of the world's population is expected to live in cities by 2050 – is leading to an exponential growth of housing and consumption sites.
Over a billion people rely on forests to maintain their everyday necessities and commercial endeavours.
They are essential to preserving biodiversity since they provide a home for over 80% of all terrestrial plant and animal species.
As stated in the Paris Agreement, forests are essential to keeping global warming to 1.5°C by absorbing carbon dioxide.
Resolving the interrelated crises of biodiversity loss, climate change, and general ecological deterioration depends on these ecosystems.
Despite their significance, forests are being destroyed at startling rates, endangering the health of the world and the welfare of future generations. As per this report, In 2023, the world lost 6.37 million hectares of forest, which is equivalent to the size of about 9.1 million soccer fields.
To stop and reverse deforestation by 2030, international initiatives have been formed, including the UNFCCC Global Stocktake (2023), the Glasgow Leaders’ Declaration (2021), and the New York Declaration on Forests (2014). Nevertheless, with one-third of this crucial decade gone, it looks like many nations will never be able to meet the targets for deforestation and restoration.
As a result of land use disputes brought on by aggressive development methods, Indigenous Peoples (IPs) and local populations frequently experience violence and displacement.
These populations suffer from poor health and reduced livelihoods as a result of the disturbance and deterioration of their ecosystems, and they gain little to nothing from the destructive development projects.
Although there isn't one approach that will work to protect and restore forests, there are a number of different efforts being made in this direction, from community-based projects to policy initiatives, which gives optimism.
Where good policies have been deployed cohesively alongside enough finance and political will, they have typically been beneficial in reversing patterns of deforestation.
Current patterns in some of the most heavily forested nations, like Brazil and Indonesia, show that, given the correct circumstances, significant advancements in forest conservation are feasible.
Recent initiatives in Brazil show that strong leadership at the national and local levels can result in rapid progress in forest conservation efforts.
Build a regulatory and fiscal environment that mandates private sector action, disclosure, and accountability for forests and other ecosystems that simultaneously incentivizes the protection, sustainable management, and restoration of forests.
Ensure full transparency on the implementation of forest commitments, so progress can be tracked, and pledgers held accountable.
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ABOUT THE FOREST DECLARATION ASSESSMENT The Forest Declaration Assessment, which is formerly the New York Declaration on Forests (NYDF) Progress Assessment, is an independent, civil society-led initiative to assess progress toward the global goals of halting deforestation and restoring 350 million hectares of degraded land by 2030. Started in 2015 as an initiative to track progress toward the New York Declaration on Forests, this effort now engages a diverse group of over two dozen research organizations, think tanks, NGOs, and advocacy groups from around the world. Each year, the Forest Declaration Assessment Partners draw on their collective expertise to provide scientific, independent, and peer-reviewed analysis that provides a comprehensive picture of the state of forest pledges. |
Important articles for refrence:
United Nations Forum For Forests
New York Declaration on Forests
Sources:
https://forestdeclaration.org/resources/summary-2024-forest-declaration-assessment/
https://forestdeclaration.org/resources/forest-declaration-assessment-2024/
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PRACTICE QUESTION Q.Discuss the recent deforestation trends across the world and its impact on marginal communities in the context of the findings of the 2024 Forest Declaration Assessment report.( 250 words) |
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