Expanding global forest management: an "easy first" proposal

Of the 350 million ha of forests worldwide, only 10 12% fall under active management. Global trends in these forests include biomass increases of up to 25% in the managed boreal and temperate forests, and annual tropical deforestation rates of 17 million ha. A worldwide forest-management plan would increase forest resources in critical areas, slow the greenhouse effect, and stay the threat to biodiversity. The Noorwijk Declaration (the Netherlands, 1989) established specific goals for global forest management. An