DEFORESTATION HUBRIS

WHEN CORPORATIONS RATHER IT RAIN MONEY THAN ACTUAL WATER

Up Next: BUT LIKE, WHY?

DEFORESTATION? WHO’S SHE?

 Merriam Webster –

n. the action or process of clearing of forests

 Forest loss has been a problem for decades.

 We have slowed, but it continues at a loss around 3.3
million hectare.

 330 million acres, 3.3 trillion square meters

Fischer
Fischer (2020)
(2020)
Up Next: CARBON EMISSION?

BUT LIKE, WHY?

 From 2010-2014: “The main commodity groups associated

with these emissions were cattle meat and oilseed
products (including both palm oil and soybeans)”

 There is an indication that international trade is a key

driver of carbon emissions from tropical deforestation,
even more so than for fossil CO22 emissions.

Pendrill
Pendrill (2019)
(2019)
Up Next: WHAT ELSE DOES IT EFFECT?

CARBON EMISSION?

Yeah carbon emission!

 From 2010 to 2014 there was an estimate of around 2.6
gigatons net emissions of CO22 per year because of
deforestation.
 This has been associated with an expansion of croplands,
pastures and forestry plantations in the tropics

Pendrill
Pendrill (2019)
(2019)
Up Next: PRECIPITATION?

WHAT ELSE DOES IT EFFECT?

Precipitation!
Up Next: EVEN IN NORTH AMERICA?

PRECIPITATION?

Yeah, precipitation!
Rainfall!
 Simulations have replaced rainforests with grassland and
show decreased precipitation and increased surface
temperature in the deforested.
 It has an effect around the world!

Hasler
Hasler (2009)
(2009)
Up Next: HOW MUCH RAIN IS
GONE?

EVEN IN NORTH AMERICA?

Even in North America!

 A study referenced in Hasler’s study had “identified a
reduction of precipitation in North America when the
Amazon is deforested”
 The deforestation of the Amazon and central Africa would
severely reduce rainfall in the Midwest.
 The same result occurred to China and the Balkan
Peninsula in the deforestation of Southeast Asia.

Hasler
Hasler (2009)
(2009)
Up Next: SO… WHAT CAN BE
DONE?

HOW MUCH RAIN IS GONE?

 It depends on the month.

 There’s a significant decrease of over 30-75% of
precipitation in the deforested area.
 Annually speaking, there’s around a 7-18% decrease.
 The most affected months have a 14-25% reduction.

Hasler
Hasler (2009)
(2009)
Up Next: FOREST…
GOVERNANCE?

SO… WHAT CAN BE DONE?

 There has been a studied solution!

Forest governance!
Up Next: BUT DOES IT REALLY
WORK?

FOREST… GOVERNANCE?

 Lukas Giessen and Gerard Buttloud define it:

 It comprises all formal and informal, public and private
regulatory structures & the interactions between public
and private actors & the effects of either on forests.

Giessen
Giessen
(2014)
(2014)
Up Next: HUH.

BUT DOES IT REALLY WORK?

 A higher influence of forest governing has been frequently

related to lower rates of deforestation.
 “…successful implementation of different governance
components mostly fosters reduced deforestation in the
tropics,”

Fischer
Fischer (2020)
(2020)
Up Next: REFERENCE
S

HUH.

 Interestingly enough, tourism had a positive correlation

meaning it related to decreasing deforestation.
 An unfortunate thing to note is the lack of diversity in
research. Most look into South/Central America and Asian
tropics. Few only look into African tropics

Hasler
Hasler (2009)
(2009)
REFERENCES

Fischer,
Fischer, Richard,
Richard, Lukas
Lukas Giessen
Giessen & & Sven
Sven Günter.
Günter. 2020.
2020. Governance
Governance
effects
effects on
on deforestation
deforestation in
in the
the tropics:
tropics: A
A review
review of
of the
the evidence.
evidence.
Environmental Science & Policy 105 : 84-101.
Environmental Science & Policy 105 : 84-101.

Giessen,
Giessen, Lukas
Lukas &
& Gerard
Gerard Buttloud.
Buttloud. 2014.
2014. Defining
Defining and
and assessing
assessing forest
forest
governance.
governance. Forest
Forest Policy
Policy and
and Economics
Economics 49
49 :: 1-3.
1-3.

Hasler,
Hasler, Natalia
Natalia &
& David
David Werth
Werth &
& Roni
Roni Avissar.
Avissar. 2009.
2009. Effects
Effects of
of tropical
tropical
deforestation
deforestation onon global
global hydroclimate:
hydroclimate: A A multimodel
multimodel ensemble
ensemble
analysis.
analysis. Journal
Journal of
of Climate
Climate 22
22 :: 1124-1141.
1124-1141.

Pendrill,
Pendrill, Florence,
Florence, U.
U. Martin
Martin Persson,
Persson, Javier
Javier Godar,
Godar, Thomas
Thomas Kastner,
Kastner,
Daniel
Daniel Moran, Sarah Schmidt, Richard Wood. 2019. Agricultural and
Moran, Sarah Schmidt, Richard Wood. 2019. Agricultural and
forestry
forestry trade
trade drives
drives large
large share
share ofof tropical
tropical deforestation
deforestation
emissions.
emissions. Global
Global Environmental
Environmental Change
Change 5656 :: 1-10.
1-10.