The data in the following table comes from the most recent assessments of global forest resources conducted by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. This table reports on the global, regional, and subregional trends in forest areas designated primarily for the protection of soil and water.
INTERPRETATION
How much total forest area was designated for protection of soil and water globally in 2000? In 2010? (Hint: Don’t forget to account for the units of measure shown in the header.)
Which subregion of Asia had the most land designated for protection of soil and water in 1990? Was this the same in 2010? Provide the data to support your responses.
| Region/subregion | Information availability | Area of forest designated for protection of soil and water (1000 ha) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # of countries | % of total forest area | 1990 | 2000 | 2010 | |
| Eastern and Southern Africa | 21 | 80.9 | 14033 | 13311 | 12611 |
| Northern Africa | 7 | 99.1 | 4068 | 3855 | 3851 |
| Western and Central Africa | 22 | 52.5 | 2639 | 3281 | 3079 |
| Total Africa | 50 | 69.2 | 20 709 | 20 447 | 19 540 |
| East Asia | 4 | 90.2 | 24 061 | 38 514 | 65 719 |
| South and Southeast Asia | 17 | 100.0 | 55 811 | 57 932 | 56 501 |
| Western and Central Asia | 23 | 99.7 | 12 222 | 13 059 | 13 669 |
| Total Asia | 44 | 95.8 | 92 094 | 109 505 | 135 889 |
| Total Europe | 45 | 99.7 | 76 932 | 90 788 | 92 995 |
| Caribbean | 11 | 53.1 | 869 | 1106 | 1428 |
| Central America | 3 | 36.9 | 124 | 114 | 90 |
| North America | 5 | 100.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total North and Central America | 19 | 97.8 | 994 | 1220 | 1517 |
| Total Oceania | 18 | 21.6 | 1048 | 1078 | 888 |
| Total South America | 10 | 85.1 | 48 656 | 48 661 | 48 549 |
| World | 186 | 86.9 | 240 433 | 271 699 | 299 378 |
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Summarize the trends in forest lands set aside for the protection of soil and water:
Between 1990 and 2010, how much has the total (global) area grown or decreased?
Between 1990 and 2010, which major region showed the most gain and how much did it gain?
Between 1990 and 2010, which major region showed the most loss and how much did it lose?
ADVANCE YOUR THINKING
Hint: To answer some of the following questions it might help to access the actual report, at www.fao.org/forestry/fra/en (see Chapter 6 of the report—Protective Functions of Forest Resources).
What might explain the patterns seen in the table?
Why is no forest area designated for protection of soil and water for North America? How might this affect how the data presented in the table is interpreted?
If the world population is 7 billlion, what is the per capita amount of forest land that is set aside for soil and water protection?