Editing Forest (section)

== Management ==
{{Main|Forest management|}}
[[File:World Production Of Selected Forest Products.svg|thumb|World production of selected forest products]]
[[Forest management]] has changed considerably over the last few centuries, with rapid changes from the 1980s onward, culminating in a practice now referred to as ''sustainable forest management''. Forest ecologists concentrate on forest patterns and processes, usually with the aim of elucidating cause-and-effect relationships. [[Forester]]s who practice sustainable forest management focus on the integration of ecological, social, and economic values, often in [[Stakeholder engagement|consultation with local communities and other stakeholders]].
[[File:Checkerboard forest in Idaho.jpg|alt=Priest River winds through mountains with a checkerboard design of trees to its east|thumb|[[Priest River (Idaho)|Priest River]] winding through Whitetail Butte with lots of [[forestry]] to the east—these lot patterns have existed since the mid-19th century. The white patches reflect areas with younger, smaller trees, where winter snow cover shows up brightly to the astronauts. Dark green-brown squares are parcels]]

Humans have generally decreased the amount of forest worldwide. Anthropogenic factors that can affect forests include logging, [[urban sprawl]], human-caused [[forest fire]]s, [[acid rain]], [[invasive species]], and the [[slash and burn]] practices of swidden agriculture or [[shifting cultivation]]. The loss and re-growth of forests lead to a distinction between two broad types of forest: primary or [[old-growth forest]] and [[secondary forest]]. There are also many natural factors that can cause changes in forests over time, including [[forest fires]], [[Forest pathology#Animals|insects]], [[Forest pathology|diseases]], weather, competition between species, etc. In 1997, the [[World Resources Institute]] recorded that only 20% of the world's original forests remained in large intact tracts of undisturbed forest.<ref>World Resources Institute (1997). [http://www.intactforests.org/pdf.publications/Last.Frontier.Forests.1997.pdf The Last Frontier Forests: Ecosystems and Economies on the Edge] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170813235644/http://www.intactforests.org/pdf.publications/Last.Frontier.Forests.1997.pdf |date=13 August 2017 }}.</ref> More than 75% of these intact forests lie in three countries: the boreal forests of Russia and Canada, and the rainforest of Brazil.

According to [[Food and Agriculture Organization]]'s (FAO) ''Global Forest Resources Assessment 2020'', an estimated {{convert|420|e6ha|e9acre|abbr=off}} of forest have been lost worldwide through deforestation since 1990, but the rate of [[forest loss]] has declined substantially. In the most recent five-year period (2015–2020), the annual rate of deforestation was estimated at {{convert|10|e6ha|abbr=off}}, down from {{convert|12|e6ha|abbr=off}} annually in 2010–2015.<ref name=":0" />

=== The forest transition ===
The transition of a region from forest loss to net gain in forested land is referred to as the forest transition. This change occurs through a few main pathways, including increase in commercial tree plantations, adoption of [[agroforestry]] techniques by small farmers, or spontaneous regeneration when former agricultural land is abandoned. It can be motivated by the economic benefits of forests, the ecosystem services forests provide, or cultural changes where people increasingly appreciate forests for their spiritual, aesthetic, or otherwise intrinsic value.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Wilson |first1=Sarah Jane |last2=Schelhas |first2=John |last3=Grau |first3=Ricardo |last4=Nanni |first4=A Sofia |last5=Sloan |first5=Sean |title=Forest ecosystem-service transitions: the ecological dimensions of the forest transition |journal=Ecology and Society |date=2017 |volume=22 |issue=4|doi=10.5751/ES-09615-220438 |hdl=11336/67453 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> According to the [[Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5&nbsp;°C]] of the [[Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change]], to avoid temperature rise by more than 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels, there will need to be an increase in global forest cover equal to the land area of Canada ({{convert|10|e6sqkm|e6sqmi|abbr=off}}) by 2050.<ref name=IPCC/>

China instituted a ban on logging, beginning in 1998, due to the erosion and flooding that it caused.<ref>{{cite news |title=Ban on Logging Saves Forests |url=http://english.people.com.cn/english/200110/25/eng20011025_83160.html |date=25 October 2001 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629191535/http://english.people.com.cn/english/200110/25/eng20011025_83160.html |archive-date=29 June 2011 |newspaper=[[People's Daily]] |access-date=16 February 2022}}</ref> In addition, ambitious tree-planting programmes in countries such as China, India, the United States, and Vietnam – combined with natural expansion of forests in some regions – have added more than {{convert|7|e6ha|abbr=off}} of new forests annually. As a result, the net loss of forest area was reduced to {{convert|5.2|e6ha|abbr=off}} per year between 2000 and 2010, down from {{convert|8.3|e6ha|abbr=off}} annually in the 1990s. In 2015, a study for ''[[Nature Climate Change]]'' showed that the trend has recently been reversed, leading to an "overall gain" in global biomass and forests. This gain is due especially to [[reforestation]] in China and Russia.<ref>{{cite journal|first1=Yi Y.|last1=Liu|first2=Albert I.J.M.|last2=van Dijk|first3=Richard A.M.|last3=de Jeu|first4=Josep G.|last4=Canadell|first5=Matthew F.|last5=McCabe|first6=Jason P.|last6=Evans|first7=Guojie|last7=Wang|title=Recent reversal in loss of global terrestrial biomass|journal=Nature Climate Change|volume=5|issue=5|page=470|date=30 March 2015|doi=10.1038/nclimate2581|bibcode=2015NatCC...5..470L}}</ref> New forests are not equivalent to old growth forests in terms of species diversity, resilience, and carbon capture. On 7 September 2015, the FAO released a new study stating that over the last 25 years the global [[deforestation]] rate has decreased by 50% due to improved [[forest management|management of forests]] and greater government protection.<ref>{{cite web|title=World deforestation slows down as more forests are better managed|url=http://www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/326911/icode/|website=fao.org|publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nation|access-date=2 October 2015|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151012010007/http://www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/326911/icode/|archive-date=12 October 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=MacDicken|first1=K.|last2=Jonsson|first2=Ö.|last3=Piña|first3=L.|last4=Maulo|first4=S.|last5=Adikari|first5=Y.|last6=Garzuglia|first6=M.|last7=Lindquist|first7=E.|last8=Reams|first8=G.|last9=D'Annunzio|first9=R.|title=Global Forest Resources Assessment 2015|url=http://www.fao.org/3/a-i4793e.pdf|website=fao.org|publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations|date=2015|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151003140455/http://www.fao.org/3/a-i4793e.pdf|archive-date=3 October 2015}}</ref>

[[File:Proportion of forest in protected areas, by region, 2020.svg|thumb|Proportion of forest in protected areas, by region, 2020<ref name=":0"/>]]

There is an estimated {{convert|726|e6ha|e9acre|abbr=off}} of forest in protected areas worldwide. Of the six major world regions, South America has the highest share of forests in protected areas, at 31 percent. The area of such areas globally has increased by {{convert|191|e6ha|abbr=off}} since 1990, but the rate of annual increase slowed in 2010–2020.<ref name=":0"/>

Smaller areas of [[woodland]] in cities may be managed as [[urban forestry]], sometimes within public parks. These are often created for human benefits; [[Attention Restoration Theory]] argues that spending time in nature reduces stress and improves health, while [[Forest School (education)|forest schools]] and [[Forest kindergarten|kindergartens]] help young people to develop social as well as scientific skills in forests. These typically need to be close to where the children live.

=== Canada ===
{{Main|Forests of Canada}}
[[File:Garibaldi National Park - Garibaldi Mountain.jpg|thumb|[[Garibaldi Provincial Park]], [[British Columbia]]]]

Canada has about {{convert|4|e6km2|e6sqmi|abbr=off}} of forest land. More than 90% of forest land is publicly owned and about 50% of the total forest area is allocated for harvesting. These allocated areas are managed using the principles of sustainable forest management, which include extensive consultation with local stakeholders. About eight percent of Canada's forest is legally protected from resource development.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.globalforestwatch.org/country/CAN|title=Canada|publisher=Global Forest Watch Canada|access-date=28 November 2014|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141204160012/http://www.globalforestwatch.org/country/CAN|archive-date=4 December 2014}}</ref><ref name="nrcan">{{cite web|url=http://www.nrcan.gc.ca/forests|title=Canada's Forests|publisher=Natural Resources Canada|date=14 October 2014|access-date=28 November 2014|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141120200746/http://www.nrcan.gc.ca/forests|archive-date=20 November 2014}}</ref> Much more forest land—about 40 percent of the total forest land base—is subject to varying degrees of protection through processes such as integrated [[land use planning]] or defined management areas, such as certified forests.<ref name="nrcan"/>

By December 2006, over {{convert|1.2|e6km2|sqmi|abbr=off}} of forest land in Canada (about half the global total) had been certified as being sustainably managed.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.certificationcanada.org/en/statistics/ |publisher=Canadian Sustainable Forestry Certification Coalition |website=Certification status – Canada & the globe|title=Statistics|access-date=28 November 2014}}</ref> [[Clearcutting]], first used in the latter half of the 20th century, is less expensive, but devastating to the environment; and companies are required by law to ensure that harvested areas are adequately regenerated. Most Canadian provinces have regulations limiting the size of new clear-cuts, although some older ones grew to {{convert|110|km2|sqmi}} over several years.

The [[Canadian Forest Service]] is the government department which looks after Forests in Canada.

=== Latvia ===
[[File:Latvian Forest Tomes pagasts, Ķeguma novads, Latvia.jpg|thumb|Latvian [[Pine]] Forest in [[Ķegums Municipality]] ]]

Latvia has about {{convert|3.27|e6ha|e6acre sqmi|abbr=off}} of forest land, which equates to about 50.5% of Latvia's total area of {{convert|24938|sqmi|order=flip}} {{convert|1.51|e6ha|e6acre|abbr=off}} of forest land (46% of total forest land) is publicly owned and {{convert|1.75|e6ha|e6acre|abbr=off}} of forest land (54% of the total) is in private hands. Latvia's forests have been steadily increasing over the years, which is in contrast to many other nations, mostly due to the forestation of land not used for agriculture. In 1935, there were only {{convert|1.757|e6ha|e6acre|abbr=off}} of forest; today this has increased by more than 150%. Birch is the most common tree at 28.2%, followed by pine (26.9%), spruce (18.3%), grey alder (9.7%), aspen (8.0%), black alder (5.7%), oak/ash (1.2%), with other hardwood trees making up the rest (2.0%).<ref>{{cite web|title=Forestry in 2015 (only in Latvian) {{!}} Latvijas statistika|url=http://www.csb.gov.lv/en/dati/e-publikacijas/forestry-2015-only-latvian-45361.html|website=www.csb.gov.lv|access-date=21 December 2017|language=en|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171222053718/http://www.csb.gov.lv/en/dati/e-publikacijas/forestry-2015-only-latvian-45361.html|archive-date=22 December 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Buklets "Meža nozare Latvijā"|url=https://www.zm.gov.lv/mezi/statiskas-lapas/nozares-informacija/publikacijas/buklets-meza-nozare-latvija-?nid=1088#jump|website=www.zm.gov.lv|access-date=21 December 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171222053235/https://www.zm.gov.lv/mezi/statiskas-lapas/nozares-informacija/publikacijas/buklets-meza-nozare-latvija-?nid=1088#jump|archive-date=22 December 2017}}</ref>

=== United States ===
In the United States, most forests have historically been affected by humans to some degree, though in recent years improved [[forestry]] practices have helped regulate or moderate large-scale impacts. The [[United States Forest Service]] estimated a net loss of about {{convert|2|e6ha|abbr=off}} between 1997 and 2020; this estimate includes conversion of forest land to other uses, including urban and suburban development, as well as [[afforestation]] and natural reversion of abandoned crop and [[pasture]] land to forest. In many areas of the United States, the area of forest is stable or increasing, particularly in many northern states. The opposite problem from flooding has plagued national forests, with loggers complaining that a lack of thinning and proper forest management has resulted in large forest fires.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wildrockiesalliance.org/issues/wildfire/enn.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130509225620/http://www.wildrockiesalliance.org/issues/wildfire/enn.html|archive-date=9 May 2013 |title=Wildfires Ignite Forest Management Debate |publisher=Wildrockiesalliance.org |access-date=3 July 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|first=Emily K.|last=Brock|title=Money Trees: The Douglas Fir and American Forestry, 1900–1944|publisher=Oregon State University Press|year=2015}}</ref>