"Nearly a million hectares of forest has been cleared just in Queensland and New South Wales and just in the hotspot areas," Dr Martin Taylor, Senior Scientist with WWF Australia, told Hack.
Wilderness Society | Forests of lutruwita / Tasmania In WWFs new report Deforestation fronts: Drivers and responses in a changing world, published today, the deforestation fronts have been expanded to 24 with eastern Australia remaining on the list. In the first analysis, NSW and Queensland were singled out for high rates of clearing, but the new report identifies further areas of concern in Victoria and Tasmania. We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the Everything you need to know about the deforestation crisis taking place across Australia. acacias). We acknowledge sovereignty was never ceded.Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander viewers are advised that this website may contain images, names and voices of people who are deceased. The total area of land cleared in Queensland was 2,446,600 hectares.
The countries with high rates of deforestation include Brazil, Bolivia, Madagascar and Borneo. While the majority of landholders are eager to embrace new ways to look after their land, scattered rogue operators are holding us back. The series of billboards across Brisbane drew attention to the devastating effects that deforestation and land clearing have on wildlife across Queensland.
Julin Parra De Moya Archives - Conservation news For industrial plantations, the ownership of the land can be different from the ownership of the trees, and management arrangements can be complex., Of the 132 million hectares of native forest in Australia, 47.2 million hectares (36%) are native forest on leasehold land, and 41.0 million hectares (31%) are native forest on land held under private freehold title. View an interactive version of this map in ArcGIS Online map viewer. The inaccuracies and lack of context in this article as originally published unduly focused on the role of native forestry in land-clearing. We pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging. A leaked report from the Natural Resources Commission last year suggested that land clearing may have surged by as much as 13 times. We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of country throughout Australia and recognise their continuing connection to land, waters and culture. We aren't able to respond to your individual comments or questions. We need to make this an issue they cant ignore, so that Queensland's spectacular forests and bushland, home to some of the most iconic animals in the world, remain intact and healthy. Data on this page are from Australia's State of the Forests Report 2018 (SOFR), with data up to or as at 2016.
The analysis identifies 24 deforestation fronts worldwide where a total of 43 million hectares of forest was destroyed in the period from 2004 until 2017. Undertaking research and collecting data to support informed decisions and policies. But critics say RFAs allow logging operations to bypass federal environment laws and often result in the habitat of threatened species being cleared without any environmental impact assessment. And around 73,285ha of thator a whopping 80%was destroyed for beef production. , Over 92,718 hectares of koala habitat were cleared in Queensland in just one year (2018-2019), with 80% of that area destroyed for beef production. The rampant deforestation for monoculture plantation and logging in western Indonesian Borneo has exacerbated the extinction risks of three plant species endemic . Across the wide range of rainfall and soil conditions that support forest, most of Australia's 'Native forest' category of forest is dominated by eucalypts (77%) and acacias (8%). Eastern Australia is now a recognised global deforestation hotspot, alongside places including the Amazon, the Congo and Borneo. , To date, 55 wildlife species and 37 plant species have gone extinct in Australia., Habitat loss is the biggest threat to koalas in Queensland and New South Wales. He estimated that in Queensland and NSW alone 970,349ha were cleared in the years 2004 to 2017. A DES spokesperson told the ABC that "SLATs applies a highly rigorous methodology". The forests of Australia are diverse and highly valued, and are among the country's most important natural resources. View an interactive version of this map in ArcGIS Online map viewer. Five reasons investors should adopt an active versus passive ESG approach, Climate change is changing the outlook for energy utilities, Bank Australia sets interim 2030 net zero target, UniSuper updates progress on net zero target, Science-Based Targets an indicator of future climate action: Federated Hermes, Woolworths commits to ambitious GHG emissions cuts, Wilderness Society links deforestation to beef production, supply chain risk, Coca Cola, WWF-Australia, farmers mark 10 years of Project Catalyst, Global Canopy Programme appoints executive director, NCD launches Soft Commodities Forest-risk Assessment Tool, CDP, We Mean Business partner for Road to Paris. Australian's have a huge appetite for shopping. Subscribe to FS Sustainability to get the latest ESG news and research. View an interactive version of this map in ArcGIS Online map viewer. Australia has strengthened seasonal measures to manage the risk of BMSB. This map shows the distribution of the Rainforest native forest type across Australia: PNG [2.0 MB], PDF [0.5 MB]. This map shows the distribution of burnt forest in Australia by the number of times each hectare was burnt in the period 201112 to 201516: PNG [0.9 MB], PDF [2.1MB]. The NGA data also fails to pick up forest thinning, according to Dr Taylor. Australia remains one of the worlds hotspots for deforestation according to a new report by WWF, which finds an area six times the size of Tasmania has been cleared globally since 2004. Under commercial forestry activities, trees are regrown after harvesting. That's why I'm leading WWF-Australia's work to help our country transition from a global deforestation hotspot to a world leader in reforestation and ecological restoration.
Australia among the top deforesting nations in the world, WWF - ABC This change is needed throughout the whole supply chain, from producers through to retailers, such as supermarkets and fast food restaurants. Once native forest logging emissions are included, this is equivalent to at least half the carbon pollution of all Australian coal-fired power stations., Increasing demand for deforestation-free commodity supply chains is putting pressure on Australia's soft commodity sectors to adopt sustainable practices. ACT is tiny, and since 2011 its forestry industry figures are reported as part of New South Wales. But in Eastern Australia, agriculture is by far the biggest driver of deforestation. This map shows the distribution of burnt forest in Australia, by planned, unplanned, or both planned and unplanned fire in the period 201112 to 201516: PNG [1.1 MB], PDF [2.4 MB]. But most of the deforestation is hidden from view.". "Let's not look for the same old bulldoze-and-dig-it-up model of recovery. Culture is how an organisation thinks, acts, and interacts. When comparing the data for land clearing in Queensland from the SLATs method and the NGA method, there are vast discrepancies between the two discrepancies which cast further doubt on the idea that Australia's tree budget is "in the black". Australia is a global deforestation front, alongside Borneo, the Amazon and the Congo. We acknowledge sovereignty was never ceded.Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander viewers are advised that this website may contain images, names and voices of people who are deceased. "There is no underestimate of areas or emissions reported in the National Greenhouse Accounts," the spokesperson said. Because the analysis only covered up to the year 2017, it excludes the effects of the catastrophic 2019-20 bushfire season, with WWF saying the accelerating effects of climate change made the need for Australian governments to increase protections for wildlife and habitat more urgent.
Australia's forest policies - DAFF - Agriculture Australia on global list for deforestation hotspots: WWF Our consumption, per person, out-strips that of people . The threats manifest themselves in the form of deforestation and forest degradation. With the support of people like you, the Wilderness Society recently launched a billboard campaign highlighting deforestation rates across Queensland, and the harm this causes to wildlife. The vast majority of clearing in Queensland is for agriculture over 90 per cent of cleared forest was replaced by pasture in the years 2016-2019. Thats the misunderstanding driving our countrys deforestation crisis. This map shows the distribution of burnt forest in areas of northern and southern Australia, by the number of times each hectare was burnt in the period 201112 to 201516: PNG [1.3 MB], PDF [1.3MB]. This time our 1-kilometre-wide piece of cleared land would stretch 318km, say from Canberra to just beyond Sydney. The data for the 2018-19 reporting periods, particularly from Queensland and New South Wales, will determine whether that has changed. Market Forces asks for ASIC investigation of ANZ, Sustainability is facing a data crisis: new research, Hong Kong stock exchange proposes climate disclosures, Karoon Energy aims for net zero 2035 target, Businesses back stronger Modern Slavery Act, ESG goes mainstream: How the role has changed and what lies ahead, CEFC doubles investment in Artesian bond fund, Podcast: Recognising tomorrow's sustainability winners, Juicing up gender equity with Orange Bonds, Women-led founders, climate tech grow VC impact sector, ANZ leads issuance of US$50m gender-lens bond, Defining financial, wellbeing impacts in housing: Kayne Anderson, Podcast: Fighting modern slavery - NSW Anti-Slavery Commissioner James Cockayne, Casting a wide net: ending modern slavery in fisheries, Modern slavery on the rise 10 years after Rana Plaza, Embedding mental health wellbeing into company culture, ASIC issues Indigenous Financial Services Framework, Government introduces gender pay gap bill, American Century Investments on impact investing and best in progress, Investors welcome Commonwealth green bond program, Super funds ESG options underweight BHP, overweight CSL: Rainmaker Information, CEFC invests $75m in Queensland recycling facility, Podcast: Impact investing - from rethink to redefine and reallocate, UN Global Compact Network Australia hires executive director, Aviva Investors creates global head of ESG role, Aviva Investors creates head of climate policy role, HSBC Australia hires head of sustainability, Australian Ethical hires CIO, head of impacts and ethics, The value in securing critical mineral supplies, The implications of Australia's new carbon emissions target for bond investors, Why Australian corporations should act on biodiversity loss and management, A burning issue: decarbonising the global steel industry, Why the move to clean energy won't be enough, Deep Decarbonisation: Green Hydrogen, Net Zero, and the Future of the EU-ETS, Science-based targets key to addressing the world's biggest challenges, The intersection of conduct culture and company value. More than 100 nations including Australia this month signed up to stop or reverse deforestation by 2030. More than 88,000 hectares of primary forest was cleared in New South Wales. The pact put the spotlight on an issue that combines carbon emissions and threatened species.
But these renowned forests, and unique species like the koala, are under enormous pressure from land clearing, logging and fire. Deforestation is Australia's hidden emitterlike adding 10 million cars to our roads. The 24 fronts identified in the report are: 10 West Africa Liberia/Ivory Coast/Ghana, 12 Central Africa Gabon/Cameroon/Republic of Congo. In a country of diverse landscapes, lutruwita / Tasmania stands a world apart. "We're putting huge amounts of taxpayer dollars into avoided deforestation and reforestation and at the same time we . Australia remains one of the world's hotspots for deforestation according to a new report by WWF, which finds an area six times the size of Tasmania has been cleared globally since 2004. According to Dr Taylor, the SLATs method gives a more accurate measure of tree loss and the WWF are calling for a standardised national system for monitoring forest cover in Australia. (We will update these figures to reflect the new stats for 2019-20 as soon as possible.). This map shows the distribution of Australia's native forests by crown cover class (i.e. That will not change until we see rates of destruction go down, he said. ESG & greenwashing: how did the investment industry end up here? "It's ridiculous to say there is more forest [now than 10 years ago]," he said. Was a mine as big as Adani's approved during the election campaign? The biennial Living Planet Report, published this week, puts . Deforestation and tree-clearing is the major cause of habitat loss for many threatened and endangered species. Other questions have also been raised about the NGA land clearing data. Want more science plus health, environment, tech and more? Forests are generally confined to regions where average rainfall exceeds 500 millimetres per year. "As soon as the Newman Government came [into office in Queensland] and weakened the laws, in fact, in their own words they 'took the axe' to the vegetation laws, we saw a five-fold increase to just the mature forest being cleared in a five year period," he said. Click here to access all of the maps from Australia's State of the Forests Report 2018. Sediments and chemicals run off cleared areas into waterways that flow out to the Great Barrier Reefsmothering this already struggling icon. Why so low? The following maps of forests in northern Australia were prepared in 2019 by ABARES for an analysis by the CRC for Developing Northern Australia.
Australian beef industry linked to destruction of forests home to He pointed to what happened in Queensland in the last decade or so as an example. We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of country throughout Australia and recognise their continuing connection to land, waters and culture. Monitoring satellite imagery and recording suspicious clearing. Let's look to a green recovery that's built on conservation, renewable energy, sustainable agriculture.". Text available under Creative Commons license. On 12 September 2017, Australian, state and territory forestry ministers issued a joint ministerial statement of support for the forestry industry. . This gives you a picture of how much land has been cleared, right across Australia, from 2010 until the most recently available data in 2018. In the climate crisis, theres economic opportunity for landholders. Unlike other states and territories, Queensland also has its own statewide annual land clearing monitoring program based on a method called Statewide Landcover and Trees Study (SLATs). In NSW, the Berejiklian government weakened land-clearing rules in 2017 and habitat destruction has since increased. To contact us directly phone us or submit an online inquiry, Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. Neither Queensland's Department of Environment and Science (DES) nor the Federal Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources responded directly to questions from the ABC about the differences in their methodologies, but both said they were confident in their systems.
Eastern Australia is now a recognised global deforestation hotspot, alongside places including the Amazon, the Congo and Borneo. Knee-high saplings are not a forest and do not balance out the ongoing destruction of older forests decades or centuries old, he said. Australia has a total of 134 million hectares of forest, which is equivalent to 17% of Australia's land area. On 12 September 2017, Australian, state and territory forestry ministers issued a joint ministerial statement of support for the forestry industry. They are designed to provide certainty for forest-based industries, forest-dependent communities and achieve conservation outcomes. And the state leading this destructive charge is Queensland. Forest destruction is a threat to more than 700 endangered Australian plants and animals and WWF-Australia has previously highlighted the effects of clearing conducted without threatened species assessments. So despite our reputation for untamed wilderness and charismatic wildlife, it's perhaps no surprise that Australia has one of the highest rates of animal extinction in the world. Deforestation in Australia has now reached globally significant levels, driven largely by land clearing in Queensland. Some forests on private land are publicly managed as conservation reserves. Koalas live in the forests of Australia and therefore are highly affected by deforestation. The Queensland government's own data shows what a massive problem deforestation is in the state. Australia's native forests occur in a broad range of geographic landscapes and climatic environments, and contain a wide array of mostly endemic species (that is, species found nowhere else) combining to form unique and complex ecosystems. Undertaking research to blow the lid off this hidden crisis.
Illegal logging - DAFF Although Operation Artemis cost Colombia more than 3.4 billion Colombian Pesos (about $765,000), deforestation did not slow down, going from 158,894 ha (about 392,636 acres) lost to deforestation . We acknowledge the Traditional Custodians, whose land we work upon and we pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging.
Land clearing in Australia: How does your state (or territory - ABC We acknowledge sovereignty was never ceded.Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander viewers are advised that this website may contain images, names and voices of people who are deceased. Nearly 50% of our forest cover has been cleared in the last two centuries, making Australia one of the worst developed countries for deforestation. Thanks! Of the 288,400 hectares cleared in Western Australia, 68,7000 hectares were primary forests at least 30 years old. Land clearing rates rocketed after the axing of restrictions in Queensland and NSW placing eastern Australia alongside the most infamous places in the world for forest destruction, said WWF-Australia conservation scientist Dr Martin Taylor. But Dr Taylor said ultimately stronger laws are what drive down land clearing.
10 Countries With the Highest Deforestation Rates in the World We recognise First Nations as the custodians of land and water across Australia and pay our respects to Elders past and present. The report says the comprehensive failure of the federal government to crack down on illegal clearing has limited the effectiveness of Australian environmental laws in protecting some habitats. About 2,000 years ago, 80 percent of Western Europe was forested; today the figure is 34 percent. Over Christmas 2022, it tried to sneak out its land clearing data, the Statewide Landcover and Trees Study (SLATS), for 2019-2020.
"We know that the general public is outraged by this whenever they hear about it. The issue is that a mature forest can be cleared in one place, and an equivalent area of 2-metre saplings may have regrown in another. Deforestation is the purposeful clearing of forested land.
The six tenure classes used for forests in the National Forest Inventory are amalgamations of the wide range of classes used by various state and territory jurisdictions. The latest Queensland governments SLATS figures for the year 2019-20 shows: This most recent 2019-20 data was released on 16 December 2022. Our 1km wide strip of cleared land would stretch for a whopping 24,466 kilometres roughly all the way around Australia twice (minus Tassie). Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES), Australia's forest and forest products industries, Accelerate Adoption of Wood Processing Innovation Program, Exports of unprocessed wood (wood export licensing), Commercial environmental forestry: Summary of the 4 year program, Optimising transport choice for plantation harvests, Why a National Indigenous Forestry Strategy, Plantations for Australia: the 2020 Vision, Forests and People - the Social Assessment, Ecologically Sustainable Forest Management, People jobs and communities - Social assessments, Annual reports and five year reviews by state, World Heritage Sub-theme: Eucalypt-dominated vegetation, Future of Our Forest Kit - Media Releases, Australia's sustainable forest management, Australia's Sustainable Forest Management Framework of Criteria and Indicators 2009, Development of Project Planning and Evaluation for Farm Forestry, The development of an effective methodology to capture forest type condition and volume data for privately managed forests, National principles related to wood production in plantations, Australia's Long Term Ecological Research Forest Sites, Mechanical Bushfire Fuel Load Reduction Programme, Monitoring the social and economic impacts of forestry, Preparing forest industries for the future - climate change research, The Tasmanian Community Forest Agreement Industry Development Programs, Research into alternatives to clear felling in old growth forests, TCFA Research into alternatives to clearfelling (Final Report), TCFA Research into alternatives to clearfelling (Operating Plan), Research into alternatives to the use of 1080, Tasmanian Community Forest Agreement Media Releases, Tasmanian Forest Contractors Exit Assistance Program, Tasmanian Forests Intergovernmental Agreement, Tasmanian Forests Intergovernmental Agreement - Contractors Voluntary Exit Grants Program, Voluntary Exit Grants Program frequently asked questions, Terms of reference for an independent facilitator, Forestry contacts, agencies and organisations, Importing timber and wood related products, Australia's bilateral relationships on forestry, Illegal Logging: Regional Capacity Building Partnership, Asia-Pacific Network for Sustainable Forest Management (APFNet), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, International Tropical Timber Organization, Report on the visit to China by NSW Rural Fire Service Forest Fire Management, Farm Forestry Plantations and Water publications, Growing a Better Australia-A Billion Trees for Jobs and Growth, National Forest Industries Plan Progress Report, Australian Forestry - planning tomorrow for today, Growing a Better Australia A Billion Trees for Jobs and Growth. Globally, commercial agriculture and tree plantations were identified as the biggest drivers of deforestation. This service may include material from Agence France-Presse (AFP), APTN, Reuters, AAP, CNN and the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced.
Why deforestation is a matter of concern for everyone? Except where otherwise explicitly authorised, any material on this website which may be construed as electoral material or an electoral matter under any State or Commonwealth Law is authorised by M. Brennan on behalf of The Wilderness Society Ltd, 132 Davey Street, Hobart Tasmania 7000. Australia has one of the highest rates of land clearing in the world. Australia is a world leader in chopping down trees and wiping out animals: two questionable accomplishments that are tightly connected. The Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) is committing almost three quarters of its Australian Recycling Investment Fund to develop a flagship construction and demolition (C&D) recycling facility in Queensland. Such claims are based on classifying young regrowth, often only knee-high, from previous clearing, as forest.
Deforestation in Australia: Drivers, trends and policy responses Maps of Australia's forests are available on the Forest maps page.
Deforestation Fronts | WWF All rights reserved. We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of country throughout Australia and recognise their continuing connection to land, waters and culture. Carbon capture - real deal or "Hail Mary pass" technology? The once abundant koala is rapidly vanishing from New South Wales and Queensland. The 24 global deforestation fronts identified in the report accounted for 80 per cent of the world's clearing. Historical clearing has caused local climates to increase by up to 2 degrees . The UN Global Compact Network Australia (UNGCNA) has hired a new executive director, recruiting from the Victorian government. In Australia, the destruction of vegetation for cattle pasture is the most significant driver of forest loss and degradation, but the continued logging of native forests in a number of eastern states is named as an important secondary cause. Your feedback has been submitted. A key element of the approach adopted in the NFPS involved the negotiation of Regional Forest Agreements (RFAs) between the Australian Government and some state governments. Its primarily driven by agriculture (mostly for beef production), mining and urban development. State of the forests Regional Forestry Hubs boundaries (2022) is the spatial dataset of the boundaries for the Regional Forestry Hubs. First, let's look at the numbers state-by-state from lowest to highest.
Australia Deforestation Rates & Statistics | GFW - Global Forest Watch It expands on a 2015 report by WWF which named 11 hotspots, with eastern Australia also appearing on that list. Get 'snapshots of agricultural, forestry and fisheries industries, or analysis of key issues. , Only 50% of Australia's forests and bushlands remain intact compared to pre-European arrival. AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time which is 10 hours ahead of GMT (Greenwich Mean Time), abc.net.au/news/deforestation-land-clearing-australia-state-by-state/12535438, Your information is being handled in accordance with the, Help keep family & friends informed by sharing this article, Jock Zonfrillo remembered as an 'incredible chef' and icon of Australia's culinary landscape, Jock Zonfrillo, celebrated chef and judge on MasterChef Australia, dies aged 46, Donald Trump denied mistrial in rape accuser Carroll's civil case, 34 injured and houses destroyed after Russia launches early morning strikes on Ukraine, Russian freight train derails after being hit by explosive device, governor says, Major route into the Kokoda track appears to have been blockaded amid tour operator feud, Tony Abbott mounts attack on Voice after a spat with parliamentary committee, Female teacher admits sexual offences against teen student, fights 10 other charges, Sudan humanitarian crisis turning into a 'full blown catastrophe', says UN, are the biggest drivers of animal extinction, Australia has one of the highest rates of animal extinction, reclassified around 400,000 hectares of forest designated as "future reserve land" to "future potential production forest", the critically endangered Leadbeater's possum, RFAs include their own environmental protections, critics say RFAs allow logging operations to bypass federal environment laws, Western Australia's forests are under threat from climate change, historical deforestation resulting in decreased rainfall, The environmental impact of Australia's bushfires has been exacerbated by decades of environmental mismanagement, A billion trees planted by 2030? Tens of millions of native animals are killed annually by this scale of clearing. As well as land clearing, Western Australia's forests are under threat from climate change. WWF-Australia 2018, All rights reserved. This map shows Australia's forests in the National Reserve System, by International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) protected area category: PNG [0.8 MB], PDF [2.5 MB]. As the only developed country with a deforestation front, it's no surprise Australias mammal extinction rates are the highest in the world. Learn more about these deforestation hotspots. The system used to estimate tree cover/loss for the NGA defines woody vegetation as of a "height or potential height greater than 2 metres, crown cover greater than 20 per cent and a minimum patch size of 0.2 hectares". Everything you need to know about the deforestation crisis taking place across Australia.