Definition of deforestation and forest conversion

Summary

Deforestation (or forest clearance) is the removal and destruction of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. This conversion can include changing forest land into farms, ranches, or urban areas. The topic also distinguishes deforestation from broader “forest area net change,” which accounts for both forest losses (including deforestation) and forest gains (such as forest expansion). Net change can be positive or negative depending on whether gains outweigh losses. In the provided material, deforestation is defined as the conversion of forest to other land uses, regardless of whether the change is human-induced. Forest area net change, by contrast, is the net result of all forest losses and all forest gains over a given period, so it does not necessarily match the amount of deforestation alone.

Key Points

• 1

  Deforestation is the removal and destruction of forests followed by conversion to non-forest land uses.

• 2

  Deforestation can involve conversion to agriculture (farms), livestock ranching, or urban use.

• 3

  Deforestation is defined as forest-to-other-land-use conversion regardless of whether it is human-induced.

• 4

  Forest area net change differs from deforestation because it includes both forest losses and forest gains, so net change can be positive or negative.