COP26: Over 100 World Leaders Vow To End Deforestation By 2030 | Key Points Of Joint Declaration

The Glasgow Leaders' Declaration on Forest and Land Use is set to cover forests totalling more than 13 million square miles, said a statement issued by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s office.

Representational image of deforestation | Photo: Getty

New Delhi: Leaders of as many as 105 nations at the ongoing COP26 climate summit in Glasgow Monday pledged to end deforestation by 2030. 

The leaders said they aim to preserve forests important for absorbing carbon-dioxide and slowing global temperature rise.

The declaration by the countries said the pledge will demand "transformative further action". Various other measures will help put the action into effect. 

The Glasgow Leaders' Declaration on Forest and Land Use is set to cover forests totaling more than 13 million square miles, said a statement issued by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s office on behalf of the leaders.

The international summit is being hosted by the UK in partnership with Italy. 

"We will have a chance to end humanity's long history as nature's conqueror, and instead become its custodian," Johnson said in the statement, calling the declaration an unprecedented agreement, media reports said.

Pledge To End Deforestation: Key Aspects

Brazil, where many regions of the Amazon rainforest are being cut down, will Tuesday sign the agreement to end deforestation.

Almost $19.2 billion of public and private funds have been included in the pledge. 

Governments have pledged $12 billion, while private companies committed $7 billion towards the cause. 

Some part of the monetary resources will fund developing countries to help them restore damaged land, combat wildfires, and support indigenous populations. An amount of $1.7 billion is dedicated to help indigenous populations.

UK PM Johnson said the deforestation pact was pivotal to the world’s commitment to the 2015 Paris Agreement goal to limit average global temperature rises to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

"These great teeming ecosystems—these cathedrals of nature—are the lungs of our planet," media reports quoted him as saying.

Brazil, China, the United States, the UK, Russia, Canada, Indonesia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo are some of the countries who will sign the pledge on Tuesday. The signatories cover around 85 per cent of the world's forests.

Some agricultural industries such as those dealing with palm oil, soya, and cocoa are responsible for deforestation because trees are cut down to make room for planting crops and grazing animals. 

Governments of around 28 countries will vow to remove deforestation from the global trade of these agricultural products.

Aviva, Schroders, and AXA are among the world's biggest financial companies who will vow to end investment in activities associated with deforestation. Over 30 financial companies are expected to make this commitment. 

The world's second largest tropical rainforest, situated in the Congo Basin, will also be protected. More than $1.5 million will be used for this purpose. 

Why Should There Be An End To Deforestation

Deforestation, which is the action of clearing a wide area of trees, is a major issue because it decreases the number of trees that absorb large amounts of carbon-dioxide. 

As a result, the concentrations of atmospheric carbon-dioxide, a greenhouse gas, increase, leading to a rise in global temperatures, and other climate change impacts.

Intact forests and peatlands are natural storehouses of carbon, and keep it sealed away from the atmosphere. Logging, burning and draining forests leads to the release of greenhouse gases.

The World Resources Institute claims that deforestation would be the third-biggest emitter of greenhouse gases in the world, had deforestation been a country. Healthy forests are important because they filter water, cause rainfall, reduce temperatures, support agriculture, and are fundamental to preserving biodiversity.