Trend Forest cover below the safe level and declining across biomes

Summary

The land system boundary compares remaining forest area with the potential natural cover that would exist without human land use, and the global figure of 64 percent sits well below the 78 percent safe threshold. Direct drivers of loss include expanding cropland and grazing, illegal logging and infrastructure, underpinned by structural problems such as weak governance and unclear land rights. The report finds that forests in every major biome have shrunk steadily over recent decades, with climate change playing a growing part. Heat, drought, fire and pests are weakening forests, with wildfires surging in the boreal zones of northern Canada and Siberia and bark beetle outbreaks spreading in temperate stands. Losing forest cuts carbon storage, moisture recycling, soil protection, biodiversity and regional cooling at once. The report warns that continued loss could heighten water stress and fire and flood risks and trigger large ecosystem shifts in places such as the Amazon.