ZIMBABWE

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Zimbabwe Forest Figures

Forest Cover
Total forest area: 17,540,000 ha
% of land area: 45.3%

Primary forest cover: n/a
% of land area: n/a
% total forest area: n/a

Deforestation Rates, 2000-2005
Annual change in forest cover: -313,000 ha
Annual deforestation rate: -1.7%
Change in defor. rate since '90s: 16.4%
Total forest loss since 1990: -4,694,000 ha
Total forest loss since 1990:-21.1%

Primary or "Old-growth" forests
Annual loss of primary forests: n/a
Annual deforestation rate: n/a
Change in deforestation rate since '90s: n/a
Primary forest loss since 1990: n/a
Primary forest loss since 1990:n/a

Forest Classification
Public: n/a
Private: n/a
Other: n/a
Use
Production: 10.1%
Protection: 2.8%
Conservation: n/a
Social services: n/a
Multiple purpose: 87.1%
None or unknown: n/a

Forest Area Breakdown
Total area: 17,540,000 ha
Primary: n/a
Modified natural: 17,385,000 ha
Semi-natural: n/a
Production plantation: 154,000 ha
Production plantation: n/a

Plantations
Plantations, 2005: 154,000 ha
% of total forest cover: 0.9%
Annual change rate (00-05): n/a

Carbon storage
Above-ground biomass: 843 M t
Below-ground biomass: 226 M t

Area annually affected by
Fire: n/a
Insects: n/a
Diseases: n/a

Number of tree species in IUCN red list
Number of native tree species: 1,747
Critically endangered: 0
Endangered: 2
Vulnerable: 12

Wood removal 2005
Industrial roundwood: 1,185,000 m3 o.b.
Wood fuel: 10,381,000 m3 o.b.

Value of forest products, 2005
Industrial roundwood: $59,047,000
Wood fuel: n/a
Non-wood forest products (NWFPs): n/a
Total Value: $59,047,000


More forest statistics for Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe—a country with serious social and political problems—has environmental concerns to match. Misguided resettlement programs by the government have resulted in environmental degradation and soil erosion, while reducing agricultural yields. Over-grazing and agriculture, combined with the erosion, are causing desertification in some areas.

Between 1990 and 2005, Zimbabwe lost 21 percent of its forest cover. The country has no primary forests left, and deforestation rates have increased by 16 percent since the end of the 1990s.

Despite this degradation, Zimbabwe has some 1,747 species of trees among its 4,500 species of higher plants. The country is also home to a number of safari animals like elephants, lions, and hippos. In total 270 species of mammals are found in Zimbabwe along with 180 reptiles and 661 birds.

From a tourism standpoint, Zimbabwe is best-known internationally for Victoria Falls and the Zambezi river. On paper, 14.7 percent of the country is under some form of protection.

Zimbabwe has one of the highest rates of AIDS infection on the planet, and population growth rates have fallen significantly in the past decade to 1.1 percent (without AIDS the population growth rate would be 2.5 percent). Today, because of AIDS, life expectancy in Zimbabwe has fallen from 64.9 to 39.2, almost a 40 percent decrease.

Zimbabwe is a major exporter of crocodile skins.

Suggested reading - Books
Unless otherwise specified, this article was written by Rhett A. Butler [Bibliographic citation for this page]

Other resources

Contact me if you have suggestions on other rainforest-related environmental sites and resources for this country.


Image copyright Google Earth, MDA EarthSet, DigitalGlobe 2005

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Last updated: 4 Feb 2006