Most alarming, says the report, is that many of these changes have accelerated in the past decade, despite the plethora of international conventions signed since the initial Rio Summit in 1992.

Climate-warming carbon emissions have increased 40% in the past 20 years, but two-thirds of that rise occurred in the past decade.

Wealthy countries have seen some improvement, with the Living Planet biodiversity index, rising 7% since 1970, as nature reserves and protections were introduced. But the biodiversity index has dropped by 60% in developing countries, where people depend more on nature.

Threats Intensive commercial logging has destroyed more than 90% of the native forests of this ecoregion. The immense size of the mighty redwood trees, and the beauty of their wood, has made them a target for loggers for more than a century. Even logging in surrounding watersheds can have severe repercussions for redwood groves, since it can cause severe flooding, fires, and sedimentation. The spread of urban areas between Monterey and San Francisco, along with the introduction of exotic plants into these ancient forests, exacerbate the problems. Cruise ships can lead to pollution, as well as disturbing whales and other marine mammals. Other threats include pollution from pulp mills and mines. Introduced beavers are also creating problems for native wildlife. Their damming of small streams is making it difficult for Coho salmon to travel upstream and spawn. Similarly, introduced rats, squirrels, and raccoons have reduced the size of seabird colonies as they prey on eggs and young birds.

For biologists, tropical rainforests are some of the richest, most exciting areas on earth! They are home to gigantic trees, colourful birds, millions of brightly hued insects, and a variety of fascinating mammals. There are 3 main regions of tropical rainforest: in Central and South America, in West and Central Africa, and in Southeast Asia.

ropical rainforests have more kinds of trees than any other forests in the world. The richest in plant species are Amazon forests, but in general all tropical forests have an incredible variety of trees

One in ten known species on Earth lives in the Amazon. Its forests contain 90-140 billion metric tons of carbon, the release of even a portion of which would accelerate global warming significantly. 30 million people living in the Amazon depend on its resources and services – not to mention many millions more living as far away as North America and Europe, but still within the Amazon’s far-reaching climatic influence.

There is a clear link between the health of the Amazon and the health of the planet. The rain forests, which contain 90-140 billion metric tons of carbon, help stabilize local and global climate.

Unfortunately, deforestation may release significant amounts of this carbon, which could have catastrophic consequences around the world.