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Facts & Figures
daddy, tell me what trees were like...
| The State of the World's Old Growth Forests
 The United States has already lost 96% of its old growth forests Only 22% of the world's old growth forests are still intact 76 countries have already lost all of their old growth forests. Eleven more countries are on the verge of losing their old growth forests. 70% of the world's remaining old growth forests are in Brazil, Russia, and Canada. Outside of the world's cold boreal regions, 75% of the world's old growth forest is threatened. Global wood consumption has increased 2.5 times since 1950. Wood consumption in the United States and Canada is three times the level in underdeveloped countries and double that of other industrialized nations. North American wood consumption is expected to increase 46% by the year 2040. We already have the technology to reduce our wood consumption by 75-90%. Source: Rainforest Action Network
|
Tropical Rainforests - Status in Selected Countries Around the Earth
Country (In sq km)
|
Original extent of forest cover
|
Present extent of forest cover
|
Current amount of annual deforestation (in sq km)
|
Bolivia (1,098,581)
|
90,000
|
45,000
|
1,500
|
Brazil (8,511,960)
|
2,860,000
|
1,800,000
|
50,000
|
Central America (522,915)
|
500,000
|
55,000
|
3,300
|
Columbia (1,138,891)
|
700,000
|
180,000
|
6,500
|
Congo (342,000)
|
100,000
|
80,000
|
700
|
Ecuador (270,670)
|
132,000
|
44,000
|
3,000
|
Indonesia (1,919,300)
|
1,220,000
|
530,000
|
12,000
|
Cote D'Ivoire (322,463)
|
160,000
|
4,000
|
2,500
|
Laos (236,800)
|
110,000
|
25,000
|
1,000
|
Madagascar (590,992)
|
62,000
|
10,000
|
2,000
|
Mexico (1,967,180)
|
400,000
|
110,000
|
7,000
|
Nigeria (924,000)
|
72,000
|
10,000
|
4,000
|
Philippines (299,400)
|
250,000
|
8,000
|
2,700
|
Thailand (513,517)
|
435,000
|
22,000
|
6,000
|
Courtesy of http://www.earthballoon.com/forest.htm
Country
|
Forest Cover
1973
(x106 ha)
|
Forest Cover
1985
(x106 ha)
|
Deforestation Rate
(x 106ha per year)
|
Percent Loss (1973-1985)
|
Cambodia
|
5.25
|
3.98
|
0.11
|
24%
|
Laos
|
18.28
|
16.52
|
0.15
|
10%
|
Thailand
|
22.56
|
16.74
|
0.49
|
26%
|
Vietnam
|
19.92
|
16.15
|
0.31
|
19%
|
Myanmar
|
48.71
|
44.82
|
0.32
|
8%
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total
|
114.70
|
98.21
|
1.37
|
14%
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Source: http://www.bsrsi.msu.edu/rfrc/stats/seasia7385.html
SOME TYPICAL CALCULATIONS
1 ton of uncoated virgin (non-recycled) printing and office paper uses 24 trees
1 ton of 100% virgin (non-recycled) newsprint uses 12 trees
A "pallet" of copier paper (20-lb. sheet weight, or 20#) contains 40 cartons and weighs 1 ton. Therefore,
1 carton (10 reams) of 100% virgin copier paper uses .6 trees
1 tree makes 16.67 reams of copy paper or 8,333.3 sheets
1 ream (500 sheets) uses 6% of a tree (and those add up quickly!)
1 ton of coated, higher-end virgin magazine paper (used for magazines like National Geographic and many others) uses a little more than 15 trees (15.36)
1 ton of coated, lower-end virgin magazine paper (used for newsmagazines and most catalogs) uses nearly 8 trees (7.68)
How do you calculate how many trees are saved by using recycled paper?
(1) Multiply the number of trees needed to make a ton of the kind of paper you're talking about (groundwood or freesheet), then
(2) multiply by the percent recycled content in the paper.
For example,
1 ton (40 cartons) of 30% postconsumer content copier paper saves 7.2 trees
1 ton of 50% postconsumer content copier paper saves 12 trees.
Air-Pollution Relief
By taking the subway or bus instead of a car, we would keep air from being fouled each year by:
22 million pounds of hydrocarbons (causes coughing and chest pains) 900,000 pounds of soot and particulate matter (damages human lung tissue) 19 million pounds of nitrogen oxides (acid rain, breathing disorders, ozone precursor) 310 million pounds of carbon monoxide (limits the blood's ability to transport oxygen to body tissue, resulting in headaches, impaired coordination and death). Annual Increases in Vehicular Emissions in 2000 (pounds / year)
|
Manhattan CBD*
|
Remaining NYC*
|
New York Region**
|
Hydrocarbons
|
9,835,281
|
12,670,405
|
2,711,315
|
Nitrogen Oxides
|
6,633,365
|
12,811,583
|
2,740,178
|
Carbon Monoxide
|
148,113,673
|
201,836,432
|
32,521,338
|
Particulates
|
271,798
|
623,034
|
145,605
|
* Assumes all bus and subway service discontinued
** Assumes all commuter rail service discontinued
Information courtesy of Community Consulting Services, Brooklyn, NY
Courtesy of http://www.brooklynrail.com/info_pollution.html
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