A third of the forests of Latin America and the Caribbean are threatened, according to a study
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In the last 300 years, forest areas have been reduced by 40% worldwide.
According to the “World Forest Report” by Botanic Gardens Conservation International published this Wednesday, a third of the forest wealth of Latin America and the Caribbean is in danger of extinction.
Of the nearly 60,000 tree species cataloged globally, about 30% are in danger of extinction, the document noted. The study also showed a similar percentage with respect to the rest of the planet.
Latin America and the Caribbean is the region with the greatest forest richness: almost 24,000 classified tree species (40% of the world total), of which 7,000 are threatened (31%).
Only 31 species are definitely considered ?? extinct ?? (0.1%), according to a global ranking that took scientists from state and nongovernmental organizations five years to complete.
The region of the planet most affected by the risk of extinction is Africa. Of the just over 9,000 classified tree species, almost 40% are threatened. Agriculture, logging and ranching together represent 70% of threats, while climate change only 4%.
In the last 300 years, forest areas have been reduced by 40% worldwide. Twenty-nine countries lost more than 90% of their trees. That amount would coincide with the figures of the Industrial Revolution, which represented economic and demographic growth unparalleled in history.
Seven staple crops are responsible for more than half of deforestation worldwide, the Botanic Gardens Conservation International survey showed. But there are also other reasons, such as the one that affects the Honduran rosewood (Dalbergia stevensonii), a Central American tree whose wood is incredibly dense, highly valued for the manufacture of musical instruments.
Due to demand, the forests of this prized species in Belize have practically disappeared, and the tree is on the Red List of “critically endangered” species.
“Tree species that have evolved over millions of years, adapting to climate change, are now unable to survive the devastation caused by human threats,” explained Jean-Christophe Vié, executive director of the Franklinia Foundation.
In the Amazon and according to another study also published on Wednesday in the journal Nature, between 103,079 and 189,755 km2 of tropical forest have suffered fires since 2001. The Amazon forest, which extends over the territory of nine countries, has a total area of about 5.5 million km2, a decrease of 20% compared to the 1960s. For every 10,000 km2 of forest burned, some 30 species of plants and 2.5 species of animals suffered a significant loss of habitat.
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