In the tropics, agriculture is the cause of more than 90% of the destruction of forests. However, a large part of the land is not cultivated or grazed, but remains unused.
If forests are destroyed, greenhouse gas emissions are produced, biodiversity is lost, and rural and forest-dependent people lose their livelihoods.
An international investigation published in the journal Science places agriculture in the direct and indirect destruction of forests, between 90 and 99%. Previously, this percentage was estimated at 80%. Only between 45 and 65% of the forest areas destroyed are subsequently used to expand agricultural production.
“In a significant part of deforested areas, nothing happens after cuttingsays co-author Dr. Matthias Baumann from Humboldt University Berlin, who studies the Gran Chaco in South America. According to him, this is due toto land speculation, cashless farmers or preemptive deforestation for fear that this practice will be illegal in the future“. Uncontrolled forest fires, speculation and conflicts over land, sporadic agriculture are some of the many causes behind deforestation.
Destruction of forests for commodities
The discussion also involves the uses given to the deforested lands and the commodities that are involved. Most deforestation is due to the expansion of pastures and soy for livestock, that is, for meat production, and only a handful of raw materials besides soy: palm oil and others like coffee, cocoa or corn.
The study shows that the effectiveness of public and private policies for production chains free of deforestation, increasingly in vogue, for example in Europe, are very limited for the practical protection of tropical forests. Much of the deforestation is due to domestic commercial demand, for example, for meat and cereals. To stop deforestation, other measures are needed, such as strengthening governance and rural development measures focusing on highly threatened areas.