Global tropical forest destruction eased last year after record losses in 2024, but researchers warn the pace remains dangerously high, equivalent to 11 football fields disappearing every minute.
Data from the World Resources Institute (WRI) and the University of Maryland show the world lost 4.3 million hectares (10.6 million acres) of tropical primary rainforest in 2025, a 36 percent drop from the previous year.
Despite the decline, scientists caution that the scale of loss continues to threaten biodiversity, carbon storage and climate stability., AFP reports.
They also highlighted the growing role of fires, intensified by climate change, as a “dangerous new normal” undermining government effort to curb deforestation. These blazes, often linked to land clearing and prolonged droughts, risk erasing recent gains made in forest protection.
Researchers stressed that while policy interventions and conservation measures have helped slow destruction, stronger global action is needed to safeguard tropical forests, which are critical to regulating the planet’s climate and supporting millions of species.
