Firstly, let's define the term rainforest deforestation:.
Rainforest - "A dense evergreen forest occupying a tropical region with an annual rainfall of at least 2.5m."" (Heritage Dictionary of the English Language.).
Deforestation - "To cut down and clear away the trees or forests from- (Heritage Dictionary of the English Language.).
Types of Rainforest: -.
1/ Tropical Rainforest - As found throughout the Amazon. Grows in belts around the equator. They contain a high level of species diversity and are found in Sth and Central America, SE Asia, Western Pacific Region and Madagascar.
2/ Seasonal Tropical Rainforest - Less species diversity, more scrub and grassland, higher incidence of fire, particularly in drier areas. Found in America's, Asia - Pacific and Africa, polewards from the Equator.
3/ Temperate Deciduous Forest - These areas have been primarily cleared for settlement and agriculture. Found in Eurasia, Nth America, Europe, E-Asia, N-China and SE-USSR.
4/ Temperate Coniferous Forest - Large quantities of pine trees, the soil is relatively infertile, sandy and boggy. Found in N-America, Alaska, British Columbia, Washington and Oregon.
All information on types of forests (Aplin et al.2001).
Deforestation is not a new environmental issue. It has been increasing since the beginning of time, however as the following statistics show it has been steadily increasing until an escalation in the late 19th and 20th Centuries.
History of Rainforest Deforestation.
The following figures show the historical dateline of deforestation around the world.
50,000 years ago - Aborigines began periodic burning directly altering natural forests.
Over 23,000 years ago - 200,000km/sq converted to treeless plains.
10,000 BC - Intensified cropping led to permanent villages in North America.
8,000 years ago - 70% of land in India was forest, the figure now stands at around 8%.
8,000 - 3,000 BC - Successive burning cleared the British Isles.