A tree felled illegally near the Ucayali River. The loggers ran away on being caught in the act
In recent years deforestation has threatened many natural areas around the world. According to the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) 12–15 million hectares of forest are lost each year. This is equivalent to 36 professional football fields every minute. Nowhere is deforestation more evident than in the South American Amazon basin. According to a recent study, between 2000 and 2010 nearly 240,000km2 of the rainforest were destroyed.
The main causes of deforestation include:
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