The initial results of the Global Forest Remote Sensing Survey were released on 30th November 2011 in a side-event to the 17th Conference of Parties of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, being held in Durban, South Africa. New estimates of the area in forest land-use and change rates (deforestation and afforestation) have been calculated at global, region (continent) and ecological zone scales for 1990, 2000 and 2005. The findings of the Survey show the world total forest area in 2005 was 3.69 billion hectares, or 30% of the global land area. The new findings suggest that the rate of world deforestation averaged 14.5 million hectares per year between 1990 and 2005, which is consistent with previous estimates. Deforestation largely occurred in the tropics, likely attributable to the conversion of tropical forests to agricultural land.

The Survey was conducted as part of the Global Forest Resources Assessments led by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), and was undertaken by a partnership between FAO and its member countries, the European Commission Joint Research Centre (JRC), South Dakota State University, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

FAO press release

Global Forest Remote Sensing Survey