Deforestation in Myanmar

According to a report by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Myanmar (also known as Burma) lost 19%, or 7,445,000 hectares (28,750 sq mi), of forest between 1990 and 2010.^[1] With forest covering as much as 70% of Burma at the time of independence, there were only slightly more than 48% forest cover left as of 2014.^[2][3] The deforestation rate of Myanmar has declined from 0.95% per year in the years 1990–2010 to about 0.3% per year and deforestation in Myanmar is now less than other countries of the region such as Indonesia or Vietnam, but still remains an important environmental issue.^[4] Three main factors contribute to continued deforestation: unsustainable and illegal logging, unresolved land rights and land disputes and extensive agricultural development.^[5]

Myanmar possesses the largest expanse of tropical forest in mainland Southeast Asia with a biodiversity much greater than temperate forests.^[6] As of 2010, Burma's living forest biomass holds 1,654 million metric tons of carbon and is home to over 80 endemic species.^[3] Despite the diversity and size of Burma's forests, only 6.3% of the land is protected and much of it is under the threat of deforestation.^[7]