Dismal results of deforestation
The RT Documentary film Forest Under Attack explores the reasons for the mass deforestation. In 2021, 17 million hectares of forest were destroyed by fire. Russia has held the abysmal record in mass forest annihilation for five years.
Contraband forest exports, wildfires for slash-and-burn agriculture, burning grass and wood chips, illegal logging — these are a few reasons that threaten the well-being of the forest. While volunteers and wardens struggle to protect the woodland, the illicit loggers find ways around the law and still get access to the best merchantable wood.
The illegal loggers can get permits to chop down one forest sector while, in reality, they take a lot more. They can also obtain permission to cut down sick or dry trees, but they do the opposite. They leave the sick and dry ones behind. It causes even more problems because dry wood often carries pests that can travel further and infect healthy trees. It is also a threat by speeding up wildfires.
Russia is the world's largest exporter of Roundwood, with at least 200 million cubic metres chopped down every year. And deforestation it's not just a Russian problem. A third of the Earth is covered in trees, but by the 21st century, already half had been cut down. So is there any way of stopping it, or is the disaster inevitable?