Forest degradation

Deforestation and forest degradation continue to take place at alarming rates, which contributes significantly to the ongoing loss of biodiversity.

In a paper[4] submitted to the XII World Forestry Congress, 2003, Jean-Paul Lanly states: "The situation is even less satisfactory regarding forest degradation due in particular to the imprecision and multiple, and often subjective, interpretations of the term".

On the contrary, a severe prolonged drought may seriously degrade a forest and make human intervention advisable to limit damages.

The Dominican Center for Agricultural and Forest Development[7] lists the following causes of forest degradation: Davidar et al.[6] add another: Earth Eclipse,[8] a platform of environment research articles, adds the following causes: Finally as an additional cause:[citation needed] Generally, any measure to prevent deforestation will also reduce forest degradation.

If a coal-fired power plant uses low-quality coal (with a high sulfur contents), this may be alleviated by flue-gas desulfurization.

Degraded forest in Lahnberge , Germany: the soil is being washed out due to lack of vegetal cover, some trees are losing ground and they appear to be sick (photo by Andreas Trepte).
Drivers of deforestation and forest degradation by region, 2000–2010, from the Food and Agriculture Organization publication The State of the World's Forests 2020. Forests, biodiversity and people – In brief [ 3 ]
Forest loss by driver and region