With our series EcoHomeLife Explains, we provide you with short articles about the main topics in the sustainability field. In this edition, we tackle the concept of deforestation.
If you’re interested in living a sustainable life and have looked into this topic, you have probably come across the term deforestation. It describes the cutting down of healthy forests to use the land for other purposes.
While we often hear about it in connection with the Amazon rainforest, it applies to any forest that is destroyed in any country.
But is deforestation bad for our environment? Well, let’s find out…
Why Deforestation Happens
Ever since humans settled down and practised agriculture, they needed land to grow their crops on and as pasture for their animals. This happened from the mid-Holocene epoch, which started 11,700 years ago.
Because most of the planet was covered by forests, this meant cutting down trees to clear the land and make it suitable for farming. Scientists believe that the majority of forests in Europe were cleared before the start of the Industrial Revolution. (Kaplan et al., 2009)
Agriculture is still the main reason why forests are cut down today. And with global demand for different commodities growing, more land is needed to satisfy this demand. The result is continued deforestation. (Sevilla et al., 2025)
According to one study, 90% of global deforestation between 2000 and 2018 can be attributed to agricultural expansion. This makes food production the biggest driver of deforestation. (Sylvester et al., 2024)
However, other commodities that our consumerist society can’t live without are also responsible. According to the World Resources Institute, 26% of deforestation between 2001 and 2015 was caused by only seven commodities: beef, palm oil, soy, cocoa, rubber, coffee, and wood.
In total, these replaced 71.9 million hectares of forest, with cattle farming alone being responsible for 45.1 million hectares.
And as demand for these grows, the chances are deforestation will continue. The United Nations estimates that, since 1990, we have lost 420 million hectares worldwide. That’s as big as the size of the EU.
Deforestation Hotspots
When we look at the media, it feels like deforestation mostly takes place in the Amazonian rainforest in South America. Brazil is often the country mentioned when we read about rainforests being cut down.
And Brazil is a hotspot, where the rate of deforestation has been high in recent years. In 2022, over 11 million hectares of rainforest were lost. Although this is lower than in 2021, which saw the highest rate since 2006. (Chaves et al., 2024)
But there are other hotspots in South America, including Bolivia, Colombia, Peru, Argentina, Mexico, and Paraguay. According to WWF, other deforestation hotspots are in Africa and Asia.
In other areas of the world, the number of forests is actually growing, like in Europe. However, it has to be said that Europe has lost 78% of its forests since Roman times. So we did most of our deforestation quite a while ago.
In 2000, only 9.1% of the UK was covered by trees, of which only 1.9% was natural forests. The remaining 4.3% was non-natural tree cover, so trees that were planted by humans in gardens, parks, etc.
So Why Is Deforestation Bad?
Deforestation is one of the biggest contributors to climate change, and there are several reasons for this:
- Increase in greenhouse gas emissions
- Loss of natural carbon storage
- Biodiversity loss
- Interruption of global water cycles
- The domino effect of deforestation
Let’s look at each of these reasons in more detail.
Increased Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Trees absorb carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere and store it in various parts of the tree to fuel their growth. During photosynthesis, CO2 is also fixed by the leaves. (Lv et al., 2024)
When trees are cut down, such as during deforestation, the carbon dioxide they have stored is released.
Scientists think that deforestation is responsible for the second largest amount of CO2 emissions worldwide, only fossil fuel combustion produces more. (Van Der Werf et al., 2009)
So it’s vital that we conserve the forests we have to stop these carbon emissions, which fuel global warming and climate change.
Whatever the land is used instead, won’t have the same ability to absorb CO2.
Lost Carbon Storage
Forests are so-called carbon sinks because they store a huge amount of carbon in various parts, including the trunk, leaves, and roots. And as long as they live, they will continue to absorb and store carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
Research suggests forests hold almost 45% of the total carbon pool on land and are able to sequester 2.4 pentagrams of carbon every year. (Pan et al., 2011)
The bigger the tree trunks, the more carbon is stored. This means that it’s vital that we preserve mature woodlands. (Måren and Sharma, 2021)
Because even if we were to plant new forests, these would take hundreds of years until they could store the same amount of carbon as the same amount of mature trees.
This is not to say that planting new trees and forests won’t help, it definitely will. But if we are to win the fight against climate change, we have to conserve the old and mature forests we have everywhere in the world.
How else is deforestation bad for our environment?
A Loss Of Biodiversity
Forests, especially tropical forests, are species-rich, which means biodiversity is very high in these landscapes. (Hill et al., 2019) According to WWF, over half of all land-based animals and plants live in or around forests. And three-quarters of all birds make their homes in these areas.
So deforestation doesn’t just remove the trees, but has a huge impact on biodiversity as a whole. And we know that biodiversity loss is one of the drivers of climate change.
Studies have shown that deforestation of the Brazilian Amazon rainforest negatively affects the abundance of orchid bees. (Brown et al., 2024) And other studies have shown the impact of deforestation on other species, too.
Another issue is fragmentation, which can be the result of deforestation. Fragmentation means that a patch of forest is cut off from the rest and surrounded by something else, like fields or pasture.
The biggest impact of fragmentation on biodiversity loss is habitat loss, but there are other effects, too. Animals can become isolated in a patch of forest, reducing access to a mate for reproduction.
But the remaining area of forest might also be too small to support the animals in it in terms of food. All this can lead to a loss of diversity in the patch. (Fahring 2003)
Interruption Of Water Cycle
Forests play a big part in the world’s water cycle. Trees perform a vital function when it comes to water retention and soil health. They anchor soil with their roots, ensuring that pollutants are filtered out.
Without the trees, soil erosion will occur, which has a negative impact on the water quality in the soil as well as in the rivers. (Monteiro Pontes et al., 2024) This will impact the overall health of the forest.
But trees also help to absorb water quickly into the soil, so without them, flooding is more likely. Because the UK is so forest-poor, flooding is happening in many areas.
Deforestation Triggers Other Climate Change Issues
Apart from the direct effects of deforestation we have described above, there are other issues caused by it that, in turn, have a negative environmental effect. It’s like a domino effect that starts with deforestation.
Studies have shown that deforestation leads to an increase in the surface temperature of the area. The greater the loss of forest cover, the higher the temperature increase. (Wolff et al., 2021)
When we try to meet the 1.5 degrees Celsius target of the Paris Agreement, these additional temperature rises won’t help.
Deforestation of tropical forests like the Amazon also has an impact on precipitation. Studies have shown that deforested areas receive less rainfall and are more likely to suffer from severe drought. (Bagley et al., 2014)
Droughts can make wildfires more likely, which release more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and cause more deforestation and further impact on wildlife and our environment.
A reduction in rainfall due to deforestation has also been a result found in a study in China. (Gao et al., 2024) Researchers in Brazil found that, due to rainfall pattern changes as a result of deforestation, soybean and maize yields were reduced.
Given that food production is one of the main drivers of deforestation, this could potentially lead to more deforestation to make up for the reduction in yield, further exacerbating the problem.
The soil our forests grow in is an important ecosystem itself, which hosts a huge biodiversity. Deforestation interrupts the balance of the soil and leads to a loss of biological diversity, fertility, and carbon storage, all of which can make the problem worse. (Mgelwa et al., 2024)
What Can Be Done About Deforestation?
Now that we have seen why deforestation is bad for our environment, you might wonder what we can do. Well, we need to protect our remaining forests. But for this to happen, governments have to put the right policies and laws in place.
In countries where there are still forests, these need to be protected by the law, and the law needs to be enforced.
But many countries are reluctant because the land is needed for food production, and there is concern that environmental laws to protect forests would have a negative economic impact.
However, a study has shown that strict enforcement of environmental laws in some Brazilian areas reduced deforestation. And the economic situation of these areas actually improved.
The researchers found that GDP per capita in the relevant municipalities was higher, and at the same time, the number of people needing income support was lower. (Merkus 2024)
This shows that protecting our rainforests can go hand in hand with economic development.
However, policies and laws aimed at stopping deforestation are mostly aimed at stopping products that are responsible for deforestation from being imported or exported.
The EU and the UK have introduced such legislation to achieve a supply chain that is deforestation-free.
While such legislation can put pressure on countries to act to prevent deforestation and the resulting environmental damage, forest loss is currently still happening.
And with surging demand in food and timber, it’s difficult to see how we can manage to protect our remaining forests. But we have to continue to hope and push our governments to do more.
