This document is an excerpt from the EUR-Lex website
Combatting deforestation
Forests are under threat from deforestation and degradation. Protecting these forests is an effective measure against global warming and the loss of precious ecosystem services.
ACT
Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions - Addressing the challenges of deforestation and forest degradation to tackle climate change and biodiversity loss (COM(2008) 645 final of 17.10.2008)
SUMMARY
WHAT DOES THIS COMMUNICATION DO?
In this paper, the European Commission sets out lines of action for the European Union response to deforestation, invites contributions from stakeholders, and aims to kick-start initial actions that create the foundations of a global response to deforestation.
KEY POINTS
BACKGROUND
Covering roughly 30 % of the world’s land (and 40 % of the EU’s land mass), forests are integral to environmental health. They provide important habitats for biodiversity, crucial services such as erosion prevention, water purification and carbon dioxide (CO2) storage and sustain the livelihoods of 1.6 billion people globally.
Meanwhile, forests are under threat from deforestation, which destroys 13 million hectares every year according to the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO). The main causes of this are conversion to agriculture and poorly controlled infrastructure development.
For more information, see the European Commission’s websites on:
RELATED ACTS
Council Regulation (EC) No 2173/2005 of 20 December 2005 on the establishment of a FLEGT licensing scheme for imports of timber into the European Community (OJ L 347, 30.12.2005, pp. 1-6)
Regulation (EU) No 995/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 October 2010 laying down the obligations of operators who place timber and timber products on the market (OJ L 295, 12.11.2010, pp. 23-34)
Decision No 1386/2013/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 November 2013 on a General Union Environment Action Programme to 2020 ‘Living well, within the limits of our planet’ (OJ L 354, 28.12.2013, pp. 171-200)
Communication from the Commission - A new EU Forest Strategy: for forests and the forest-based sector (COM(2013) 659 final of 20.9.2013)
last update 14.09.2015