Pristine forest loss continues unabated
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Tropical rainforests disappeared across the globe at a rate of one football pitch every six seconds last year. Brazil was responsible for more than a third of the total


TROPICAL FOREST LOSS, 2019 (hectares)

Total 11.9 million

Primary forest 3.8 million
Area nearly as big as Switzerland

PRIMARY FOREST LOSS, 2002-2019 (million hectares)

2.7                                        6.1
2002 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19

7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0

2019: 3.8m – third highest loss this century and 3% higher than 2018

Three-year moving average

Brazil: 1.4 million
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TOP 10 COUNTRIES LOSING PRIMARY FOREST IN 2019 (hectares) 

Brazil 1,361,000
D.R. Congo 475,000 
Indonesia 324,000
Bolivia 290,000
Peru 162,000
Malaysia 120,000
Colombia 115,000 
Laos 72,000
Mexico 66,000 
Cambodia 63,000


Agricultural expansion, wildfires, logging, mining and population growth all contribute to deforestation

Primary forest – intact areas of mature trees – is especially important for biodiversity and carbon storage
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Pictures: Newscom, AP

Sources: University of Maryland, Global Forest Watch, World Resources Institute 
© GRAPHIC NEWS