Deforestation Fronts

From 2000 to 2018 two-thirds of total global forest cover loss occurred in the tropics and sub-tropics. There is a higher total annual forest cover loss in the tropics, and higher annual rates of loss in the subtropics.

The WWF identified 24 deforestation fronts across 30 countries, comprising over half (52%) of the total deforestation in Latin America, sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia and Oceania.

Thus, there is also scattered deforestation outside the boundaries of these deforestation fronts. Nine of the deforestation fronts are in Latin America, eight in Africa and seven in Asia and Oceania.

In some the deforestation rate is declining, while others show a moderate or rapid increase.

The location of the deforestation fronts is broadly similar to the last WWF analysis in 2015, although several new fronts have emerged, and deforestation tends to be more widespread than acknowledged before.