Central America

n the last 30 years Central America has lost 2/3 of its forest cover. Why?  It's primarily due to the rapidly growing population seeking more farmland and household firewood.  Deforestation contributes to soil erosion, water scarcity, and climate changes.

      From December 5-20, 1998 , Past RI Director Bill Cadwallader was on assignment by President James Lacy in Central America to assess damage from Hurricane Mitch.  According to Cadwallader's report, devastation from the exceptionally intense wind and rain of the storm was seriously exacerbated by the deforestation caused by overpopulation in the region.

     Three fourths of Central America is hilly or mountainous. When stripped of forest cover, the hillsides are unable to hold water and soil.
   
     Cadwallader recommended a number of emergency measures to President Lacy that focused mainly on humanitarian programs for this area of need.  He recommended a Rotary Conference to address the issues of deforestation and overpopulation.  In Honduras, San Pedro Sula has grown form a city of 10,000 ten years ago to a metropolis of 600,000 today.

     It is feared that if Rotarians do not take the leadership role, when the population doubles in 10 years or quadruples in 16 years, the next catastrophe will be even worse.

Worldwide

oth North Africa and the Middle East have undergone centuries of deforestation. They have lost 11 percent of their remaining natural forest cover during the 1980's. Natural forest cover in these regions now averages less than 1 percent of the total land area. 

     Worldwide 600,000 square miles of forest were cut in the last 10 years.

     Tropical forests compose just over half the world's forest cover.  The world lost 1,737,458 square miles of tropical forest between 1960 and 1990.  Asia lost almost one third of its forest cover during that period,  compared to Africa and Latin America which lost 18%.

     Whether tropical forests (above in Indonesia) or forest cover in the Himalayas of Nepal, man continues to destroy the very environment upon which he depends for survival.