5 facts you might not know about why forest biodiversity matters

The document highlights the critical role of forest biodiversity, noting that up to 350 million people depend on forest ecosystem services and that nearly half of approved anti-tumour pharmaceuticals are derived from natural sources. It warns of significant primary forest loss, stating that a UK-sized area of tropical forest was lost annually between 2014 and 2018, and that tropical tree losses during this period emitted 4.7 gigatons of CO2 per year. Additionally, it emphasizes the importance of soil health for carbon sequestration and warns that simple tree planting can result in 'green deserts' if biodiversity and indigenous species are ignored.

• Primary forest loss remains high, with data from the New York Declaration on Forests (NYDF) showing an average annual loss of tropical forest equivalent to the size of the UK between 2014 and 2018. Global Forest Watch data indicates that in 2019, primary rainforest was lost at a rate of one football pitch every 6 seconds, representing a 2.8% increase over 2018.
• Forest soils are vital for climate mitigation; in Great Britain, forest soils contain more carbon than the trees themselves. Healthy soil, which contains more organisms in a single teaspoon than there are people on Earth, is essential for the survival of forest ecosystems and the reduction of atmospheric carbon.
• Simple tree planting does not guarantee a healthy biome and can lead to 'green deserts' with low biodiversity. A 2010 study by US academics suggests that planting indigenous tree species on degraded lands is more likely to positively impact biodiversity than planting in existing forests, grasslands, or shrublands.
• Deforestation and land-use change are major drivers of greenhouse gas emissions. Tropical tree losses from 2014 to 2018 caused 4.7 gigatons of CO2 emissions annually, exceeding the 2017 total emissions of all European Union member states. Combined with the loss of mangroves and peatlands to farming, these activities contribute approximately 13% of total human CO2 emissions.
• Forest biodiversity is essential for medicine; 48.6% of approved anti-tumour pharmaceuticals are either natural products or directly derived from natural sources. In the Amazon, 107 species are currently endangered, including the cinchona tree, which provides the malaria drug quinine.

APA

Fleming, S. (2021). 5 facts you might not know about why forest biodiversity matters. World Economic Forum. https://www.weforum.org/stories/nature-and-biodiversity/forest-biodiversity-facts-world-wildlife-day/

Chicago

Fleming, Sean. 5 facts you might not know about why forest biodiversity matters. World Economic Forum, 2021. https://www.weforum.org/stories/nature-and-biodiversity/forest-biodiversity-facts-world-wildlife-day/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Fleming |first1=Sean |title=5 facts you might not know about why forest biodiversity matters |publisher=World Economic Forum |date=3 March 2021 |url=https://www.weforum.org/stories/nature-and-biodiversity/forest-biodiversity-facts-world-wildlife-day/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{fleming2021facts, author = {Fleming, Sean}, title = {{5 facts you might not know about why forest biodiversity matters}}, institution = {World Economic Forum}, year = {2021}, month = mar, url = {https://www.weforum.org/stories/nature-and-biodiversity/forest-biodiversity-facts-world-wildlife-day/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }