The state of the forests of Papua New Guinea: mapping the extent and condition of forest cover and measuring the drivers of forest change in the period 1972 - 2002

Abstract

The study of forest change across Papua New Guinea records that extensive and rapid deforestation and forest degradation have occurred over the thirty years from 1972 to 2002. The main human activities driving these changes are identified as commercial forestry, subsistence agriculture, fires, and the development and operations of mines and plantations.