Global deforestation has reached an alarming peak of nearly 30 million hectares per year. Since it’s often hard to visualize such a large number, just think of the combined area of Great Britain and Ireland. That is the amount of land that is cleared each year. In 2018, the figure was still 18 million hectares. Major economic powers such as Germany and the U.S. leave 91–99% of their ecological footprint outside their own borders. Every year, vast areas of forest are cleared for raw materials such as coffee, cocoa, palm oil, and soy. Forests near the equator, such as those in Brazil or the Congo, are particularly affected. Not only does the environment suffer, but the habitats of animals—such as the orangutan—are also being destroyed by our consumption habits. So what can we do to counteract this?
Our Consumption Habits
If we want to do something good for the environment and protect it, we must first take a look at our own behavior. Today's society is still considered a throwaway society. We buy an endless number of new items and replace them after a short time—whether it's technology, food, or furniture.
Food Consumption
According to a WWF study, over 18 million metric tons of food end up in the trash in Germany each year. Even if we consider just 10 million metric tons, this means that 2.6 million hectares of farmland are cultivated each year for no reason at all. Added to this are 48 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions released unnecessarily. This is not only unfair to people living in famine, but also causes massive damage to our environment.
People often buy products that harm the environment. While avocados are good for us and our health, they consume vast amounts of water and farmland. Forests are illegally burned down to make way for plantations, and in some countries—such as Mexico—war rages because avocado production there is controlled by cartels. These cartels demand protection money from plantation owners and even commit murders to maintain their dominance.
The same applies to palm oil, which is found in cosmetic products, as well as in cookies and chocolate, among other things. The number of oil palm plantations is steadily increasing, destroying large swaths of the rainforest. Furthermore, these plantations cause significant environmental and social problems in the producing countries.
Illegal slash-and-burn practices also frequently occur in palm oil production. These not only fuel climate change but also displace animals and people from their habitats. The refining of palm oil produces many pollutants, including some that may be carcinogenic. Slash-and-burn practices also release additional climate-damaging CO2. The deliberate burning of land causes peat soils to dry out, leading to the release of climate-damaging gases. Normally, peat soils store CO2 and water, which naturally counteracts drought, fire, and CO2 emissions.
Some of the animals living in the affected areas, such as orangutans, are already threatened with extinction, and their habitat continues to shrink with every passing second.
Orangutans need trees to build a sleeping nest every night. As a result of rainforest destruction, these animals are being burned, displaced, or starving while searching for food because there is nothing left of what they need.
Mothers are killed by criminals, and their young are sold and kept chained up. Great apes were once widespread in China, among other places. However, today these species are found only in Borneo and Sumatra. According to the IUCN Red List, Bornean orangutans are considered critically endangered.
A projection indicates that by 2080, Bornean orangutans will have lost 69–80% of their range—compared to its size in 2010—due to climate change.
Due to their low reproduction rate, the long period during which young orangutans depend on their mothers, and their late sexual maturity, the remaining orangutans find it difficult to compensate for the population losses that have occurred—especially when their natural habitat no longer exists.
When it comes to furniture production, too, some things are going terribly wrong. Whether in the Amazon, the rainforests of Indonesia, or the Far East of Russia, a massive proportion of the timber harvested there is illegal. This means that national or international laws were violated during the harvesting, transport, or sale of the timber. Forest owners and companies that source and harvest their wood sustainably and legally face unfair competition. According to a WWF study, approximately 16–19% of timber imports into the EU come from illegal logging. In Germany alone, 7–9% of timber imports come from illegal sources.
What We Need to Do
To prevent further deforestation, consumer behavior must change. Buy sustainable and locally sourced food—and only as much as you really need. When shopping, pay attention to the ingredients in the products you’re buying. Choose products without palm oil and opt for organic products and those made with local oils. Or reduce your purchases of products containing palm oil, such as chocolate. Look for the Fairtrade seal. This seal identifies products that come from fair trade and were produced in accordance with specific social, environmental, and economic criteria.
When buying wooden furniture , it is also important to support certified manufacturers who source their wood legally and locally. Invest in furniture that is PEFC-certified. PEFC monitors forest management ```