Deforestation Explained: Should We Cut Down Trees?

Deforestation refers to both the human-driven and natural removal of trees.¹ When debating whether we should destroy trees, it’s important to consider the various perspectives.

Firstly, what do we gain by cutting trees down? Secondly, what are the repercussions? This article explores these questions to determine whether or not we should cut down trees.

How many trees are cut down each year? 

The exact number of trees cut down each year is difficult to quantify. The size of the area deforested is the most common measurement for deforestation. For instance, since 2014, an area the size of the UK, equal to 26 million hectares (64 million acres) has been lost.²

Various factors affect how many trees grow in any given region.³ The rate of deforestation also changes over time and varies between different countries and climates.⁴ Overall, estimates range between 3.5 billion to 7 billion trees felled annually.⁵

How many trees are cut down every day?

With the annual estimate, it’s possible to deduce the daily number of trees cut down. The midpoint between 3.5 and 7 billion is 5.25 billion. By dividing this by the number of days in a year, we can establish that 14,383,562 trees are felled daily.

It is difficult to picture the scale of deforestation in numerical terms. This is partially why the area of forest destroyed is more commonly cited than the actual number of trees.  

Why do we cut down trees?

The principal reason for cutting down trees is to clear space for agriculture.⁶ As much as 80 percent of global deforestation occurs to replacing forests with farmland.⁷ Increasing demand for just four commodities drives most of today’s deforestation: beef, soy, wood products, and palm oil.⁸ Logging activities also cut down countless trees to provide the world’s wood and paper products.⁹

In short, economic incentives are behind much of the world’s deforestation. 

What are the repercussions of deforestation?

The repercussions of deforestation at the current rate are catastrophic for our planet. Levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere are already at their highest level in human history.¹⁰ This greenhouse gas traps heat and increases global warming.¹¹ Trees are an effective way to reduce CO2 in our atmosphere since they absorb and store carbon as they grow.¹² However, deforestation releases the sequestered carbon in trees and is currently responsible for 20 percent of global carbon emissions.¹³  

The rate of deforestation is now so high that forests are actually losing their capacity to act as carbon sinks.¹⁴ This increases the likelihood of a global rise in temperature in excess of 1.5°C. If this happens, it significantly inflates the probability of catastrophic events like rising sea levels, mass extinctions, droughts, tropical cyclones, forest fires, and ocean acidification.¹⁵ The disastrous consequences of our current rate of deforestation, therefore, monumentally outweigh the short-term economic gains.

1. Nunez, C. (2019). Deforestation and Its Effect on the Planet. [online] Nationalgeographic.com. Available at: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/deforestation/.
2. Harvey, F. (2019). World losing area of forest the size of the UK each year, report finds. [online] the Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/sep/12/deforestation-world-losing-area-forest-size-of-uk-each-year-report-finds.
3. Worland, J. (2015). Here’s How Many Trees Humans Cut Down Each Year. [online] Time. Available at: https://time.com/4019277/trees-humans-deforestation/.
4. Butler, R. (2020). Deforestation: facts, figures, and pictures. [online] Mongabay.com. Available at: https://rainforests.mongabay.com/deforestation/.
5. Rainforest Action Network. (2017). How many trees are cut down every year? – The Understory. [online] Available at: https://www.ran.org/the-understory/how_many_trees_are_cut_down_every_year/#:~:text=3.5%20billion%20to%207%20billion%20trees%20are%20cut%20down%20per%20year.
6. Youmatter (2020). Deforestation – What Is It? What Are Its Causes, Effects And Solutions? [online] Youmatter. Available at: https://youmatter.world/en/definition/definitions-what-is-definition-deforestation-causes-effects/.
7. Youmatter (2020). Deforestation – What Is It? What Are Its Causes, Effects And Solutions? [online] Youmatter. Available at: https://youmatter.world/en/definition/definitions-what-is-definition-deforestation-causes-effects/.
8. Union of Concerned Scientists. (2016). What’s Driving Deforestation? [online] Available at: https://www.ucsusa.org/resources/whats-driving-deforestation.
9. Nunez, C. (2019). Deforestation and Its Effect on the Planet. [online] Nationalgeographic.com. Available at: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/deforestation/.
10. Dean, A. (2018). How does deforestation contribute to climate change? – Climate Council. [online] Climate Council. Available at: https://www.climatecouncil.org.au/deforestation/.
11. Nunez, C. (2019). Deforestation and Its Effect on the Planet. [online] Nationalgeographic.com. Available at: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/deforestation/.
12. Nunez, C. (2019). Deforestation and Its Effect on the Planet. [online] Nationalgeographic.com. Available at: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/deforestation/.
13. Inter Press Service. (2015). Bamboo – An Answer to Deforestation or Not in Africa? [online] Available at: http://www.ipsnews.net/2015/02/bamboo-an-answer-to-deforestation-or-not-in-africa/.
14. the Guardian. (2020). Tropical forests losing their ability to absorb carbon, a study finds. [online] Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/mar/04/tropical-forests-losing-their-ability-to-absorb-carbon-study-finds#:~:text=Forests%20lose%20their%20ability%20to [Accessed 4 Feb. 2021].
15. IPCC (2018). Summary for Policymakers — Global Warming of 1.5 oC. [online] Ipcc.ch. Available at: https://www.ipcc.ch/sr15/chapter/spm/.