Tropical forest loss eased in 2023 but threats remain, analysis shows

A view of a deforested area in the middle of the Amazon forest, near the BR-230 highway, known as Transamazonica, in the municipality of Uruara, Para, Brazil, July 14, 2021. REUTERS/Bruno Kelly/ File Photo

SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Tropical forest loss declined last year, but other indicators show that the world's woodlands remain under tremendous pressure, according to an analysis released on Thursday by the Global Forest Watch monitoring project.

Destruction of forests helps drive global climate change. Because trees absorb climate-warming carbon dioxide and store it as carbon in their wood, that greenhouse gas is released when the wood rots or burns. This destruction also imperils biodiversity because of how many plant and animal species call forests home.