The human drivers of global land cover change: the case of forests

Abstract

The results of a new approach to the specification of the relationship between deforestation and population are presented. They suggest that approximately half of the deforestation that has occurred over the long sweep of human history can be explained statistically in terms of population growth. It is cautioned, however, that serious conceptual and methodological problems confront the analysis of the relationship. It is also emphasized that the relationship is complex. Evidence is presented to show that it has changed through time, and that it is complicated by interactions between various factors operating in different ways at different levels. Copyright © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.