HC Deb 19 April 2004 vol 420 cc387-8W
Norman Baker

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what net percentage of forest cover worldwide has been lost since 1990; and what acreage this represents(a) in total and (b) broken down by country. [165810]

Mr. Gareth Thomas

The net percentage of forest cover change worldwide between 1990 and 2000 was 2.4 per cent. This represents the change in forest cover over the 10-year period to 2000 and is the most up-to-date global assessment of forest resources.

  1. (a) In terms of acreage this represents a total worldwide loss during the 1990s in forest cover of 232,214,811 acres (93,974,000 hectares).
    2. 388W
  2. (b) Forest cover data for individual countries may be found in the Global Forest Resources Assessment 2000 Main Report. This is published by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations and is available online via the following web link: http://www fao.org/forestry/foris/webview/forestry2/ index.jsp?siteld = 101&sitetreld = 8334&langld = 1&geold = 0

Norman Baker

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what percentage of land area in(a) Africa, (b) Asia, (c) South America, (d) Europe and (e) North America he estimates was covered in forest in (i) 1975, (ii) 1985, (iii) 1995 and (iv) 2002. [165811]

Mr. Gareth Thomas

Reliable and comparative global forest cover data are not available for the years requested. They are available for the years 2000 and 1990 and I have provided these as follows.

This information is drawn from the Global Forest Resources Assessment 2000, published by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations, which is the most comprehensive and technologically advanced assessment in FAO's 50-year history. The Global Forest Resources Assessment of 1990, although not as advanced, brings together comparable information on the world's forest resources for the period 1980–90.

The percentage of land area covered in forest in 1990 and 2000 in each of the regions of the world is as follows:

  1. (a) Africa: (i) 23.6 per cent. in 1990; (ii) 21.8 per cent. in 2000
  2. (b) Asia: (i) 17.9 per cent. in 1990; (ii) 17.8 per cent. in 2000
  3. (c) South America: (i) 52.6 per cent. in 1990; (ii) 50.5 per cent. in 2000
  4. (d) Europe: (i) 45.6 per cent. in 1990: (ii) 46 per cent. in 2000
  5. (e) North and Central America: (i) 26 per cent. in 1990; (ii) 25.7 per cent. in 2000.