Introduction:
Deforestation progresses as humans alter landscapes and extract resources from the environment. Historically, the world has lost vast areas of tree cover and continues to do so today. The main reason for concern is that forests sequester tremendous amounts of carbon and provide habitat for much of the world’s biodiversity. Although the trend of decreasing forest cover continues today, it is very unevenly distributed around the globe and in many places is offset by conservation and reforestation efforts. In this activity, we will explore spatial and temporal trends in deforestation.
DATA SETS:
1. First, we will assess which type of forest is most heavily impacted by deforestation. Select “Deforestation by Forest Type (2001-2012)” from the Data Set menu. The data that are presented are based on the loss of greater than 50% tree cover. Which forest type has suffered the greatest loss for this time period?
| A. |
| B. |
| C. |
| D. |
2. How many times greater has this loss been than the next greatest category?
| A. |
| B. |
| C. |
| D. |
3. Of course, deforestation can be offset by reforestation efforts. Select “Deforestation and Reforestation by Forest Type (2001–2012)” from the Data Set menu to compare the amount lost to the amount gained. Which vegetation type has the most significant loss overall?
| A. |
| B. |
| C. |
| D. |
4. What has been the net loss on boreal forest cover for this time period and how does this compare to the loss in tropical forests?
| A. |
| B. |
| C. |
| D. |
5. Now we will examine which countries have the highest deforestation rates. To do so, select “Top Ten Countries by Deforestation (2001–2014)” from the Data Set menu. Which nation had the greatest amount of deforestation for this time period?
| A. |
| B. |
| C. |
| D. |
6. Looking at the raw data for how much area is deforested can be misleading if it is not examined in context of how much forested area there was to begin with. In this exercise, we will be looking at the total amount of forested area in the year 2000 and the total deforestation over the period from 2001–2014. Select “Top Ten Countries by Deforestation with Total Forested Area” from the Data Set menu. Do the highest deforestation rates correlate with the nations with the greatest forest area?
| A. |
| B. |
| C. |
| D. |
7. Now we will look at trends in forest cover loss for the nations with the highest deforestation rates. Select “Line Graph – Greatest Deforestation by Country” from the Data Set menu. As we determined from the previous graph, Brazil has the most deforestation for the period from 2001–2014. Determine from the data displayed on the graph if Brazil also has the highest annual deforestation rate.
| A. |
| B. |
| C. |
| D. |
8. Which of the following statements is a valid characterization of the general trends that can be gathered from this graph?
| A. |
| B. |
| C. |
| D. |
9. There are two peaks in deforestation for this time period among the countries displayed. In which years did they occur?
| A. |
| B. |
| C. |
| D. |
10. The most dramatic increases in deforestation in recent years have taken place in the Mekong River basin, West Africa, Madagascar, and the Gran Chaco region of South America. Create a line graph showing the annual area deforested for these regions from 2001 to 2014 by selecting “Line Graph – Greatest Increase by Country” from the Data Set menu. Which nation has had the most significant difference between its lowest and highest annual deforestation for this time period?
| A. |
| B. |
| C. |
| D. |