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Global forest loss slows but El Niño fires could threaten progress
Key takeaways
- Mark Poynting Climate researcher Reuters Large areas of the Amazon rainforest were still lost in 2025, but not as quickly.
- Researchers estimate that nearly 43,000 sq km (17,000 sq miles) of old-growth tropical forests were lost globally in 2025 – about the size of Denmark.
- While it is about a third lower than record losses in 2024, scientists warn that tropical forests - among the Earth's most important ecosystems - are still disappearing much faster than a decade ago.
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Mark Poynting Climate researcher Reuters Large areas of the Amazon rainforest were still lost in 2025, but not as quickly. The loss of tropical rainforests slowed last year, new satellite data suggests, largely due to Brazil's efforts to curb deforestation in the Amazon.
Researchers estimate that nearly 43,000 sq km (17,000 sq miles) of old-growth tropical forests were lost globally in 2025 – about the size of Denmark.
While it is about a third lower than record losses in 2024, scientists warn that tropical forests - among the Earth's most important ecosystems - are still disappearing much faster than a decade ago.
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