36 Countries Gained More Trees than They Lost
According to a study, global tree cover increased by 130.9 million hectares between 2000 and 2020. That's an area larger than Peru all together.
Thanks to new data from researchers at the University of Maryland and WRI: Tree cover — a lot of it — is sprouting up all over the world.
According to the study, global tree cover increased by 130.9 million hectares between 2000 and 2020. That's an area larger than Peru all together.
More than half of the world's total tree cover gain is concentrated in three countries.
Kazi Mahmood
At 68 million hectares, Russia, Canada, and the United States account for more than half of the world's tree gain. However, from 2000 to 2020, all three countries lost more tree cover than they gained, resulting in overall net losses.
From 2000 to 2020, 36 countries* saw a net increase in tree cover, with distinct regional patterns.
Ireland, Poland, Denmark, and the Netherlands were among the European countries with the highest increases. Europe now has more tree cover than it did in 2000, a net increase of 6 million hectares.
Asia also has a high proportion of net gainers, including Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan in Central Asia and Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan in South Asia.
Africa and the Americas saw lower net gains. Uruguay is the only country in South America with a net gain, while gains were found in Sudan, South Sudan, Morocco, and Algeria in Africa.
