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Global Alarm: South America Among World Leaders in Tropical Forest Loss

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The World Resources Institute (WRI) released its highly anticipated annual Global Forest Review report, revealing concerning figures on global forest and tree cover loss between 2001 and 2024.

The report ranks Russia as the country with the highest total tree cover loss, with 88.8 million hectares vanished, closely followed by Brazil with 73.3 million and Canada with 62.6 million.

Although Russia leads in absolute volume, the most dramatic impact is seen in humid tropical rainforests: in this area, Brazil sadly stands as the global leader, with 33.5 million hectares of primary humid tropical forest lost in just two decades.

South America is strongly represented in this ranking. Bolivia ranks fourth, with 5.7 million hectares lost, while Peru (2.8 million) and Colombia (2.1 million) also appear among the ten most affected countries, alongside Paraguay (1.2 million).

Regarding the proportion of likely permanent loss, Indonesia and Malaysia stand out, where 78% of the vanished tree cover is difficult to recover, as well as Brazil, where 75% of the loss is considered irreversible.

These figures highlight an urgent challenge for global conservation: halting accelerated deforestation, particularly in South American tropical forests, essential for planetary climate balance and home to unique biodiversity.

The WRI report is a wake-up call for governments, industries, and communities: the world's forests are vanishing at an alarming rate.