What's Driving Deforestation

Tropical deforestation, driven primarily by beef, soybeans, palm oil, and wood products, accounts for 10 percent of global warming emissions and results in the loss of critical habitats for endangered species. In major producing countries, these four commodities cause deforestation at a rate of approximately 15,000 square miles per year, though the document notes they can be produced without forest destruction.

• Four specific commodities—beef, soybeans, palm oil, and wood products—are the primary drivers of the majority of tropical deforestation.
• Tropical deforestation contributes 10 percent of global warming emissions and destroys critical habitats for numerous endangered species.
• In the primary producing countries of these four commodities, deforestation occurs at a rate of roughly 15,000 square miles annually, which is equivalent to clearing the state of Montana every ten years.

APA

Union of Concerned Scientists (2016). What's Driving Deforestation. https://www.ucs.org/resources/infographic-whats-driving-deforestation

Chicago

Union of Concerned Scientists. What's Driving Deforestation. 2016. https://www.ucs.org/resources/infographic-whats-driving-deforestation.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Union of Concerned Scientists |title=What's Driving Deforestation |date=12 April 2016 |url=https://www.ucs.org/resources/infographic-whats-driving-deforestation |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{unionofconcernedscientists2016whats, author = {{Union of Concerned Scientists}}, title = {{What's Driving Deforestation}}, institution = {Union of Concerned Scientists}, year = {2016}, month = apr, url = {https://www.ucs.org/resources/infographic-whats-driving-deforestation}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }