Forest degradation
A loss of carbon stock or ecological function within land that remains classified as forest, invisible to simple forest-cover maps.
Degradation is what happens inside the forest boundary: selective logging, fuelwood collection, grazing, fire and edge effects that thin a stand without converting it to another land use. The land stays forest, but it holds less carbon and supports less biodiversity.
This makes degradation systematically harder to see than deforestation. A binary forest mask registers no change, and carbon loss can proceed for years before enough canopy opens to cross a detection threshold. Estimates carry wider uncertainty than for clear-cut conversion as a result.
Remote sensing approaches combine radar structure, lidar samples, time-series anomalies and fire records to infer thinning. Because the signal is subtle, programmes usually demand more supporting evidence — field plots, harvest permits, log-landing detection — than they would for outright conversion.
Frequently asked questions
Is degradation the same as forest loss?
No. Forest loss converts land to another use. Degradation reduces carbon stock while the land remains forest.
Why is degradation so often omitted from estimates?
Because it is difficult and costly to detect and quantify, and its uncertainty is high relative to deforestation signals.