Australia's official figures show an increase in forest cover since 2008, but new research suggests this is misleading due to a flawed accounting method. The study, commissioned by the Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) and led by Griffith University's Climate Action Beacon, argues that net forest figures obscure the true extent of deforestation.
Australia calculates forest cover by subtracting losses from gains, a method described by co-author Prof Brendan Mackey as 'an accounting sleight of hand'. The report warns that new forests do not match the carbon storage or biodiversity of old-growth forests being cleared. It estimates that clearing in intensive regions releases up to 120 times more greenhouse gas emissions per hectare than gains from vegetation thickening.
The analysis also questions the reliability of official data, suggesting that gains may be overestimated due to misclassification of areas as forest when no real change occurred. Most destruction happens in species-rich forests, while regrowth occurs in drier, sparser regions, making them ecologically incomparable.
Nathaniel Pelle of the ACF stated that Australia is unique among wealthy nations in its deforestation problem, and that the argument of regrowth offsetting losses is 'clearly not true'. He emphasised the need to preserve old, high-carbon-stock forests to prevent extinctions and achieve net zero emissions.
A spokesperson for the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry defended the reporting, stating it follows the internationally agreed Montreal Process and is transparent about the components of net forest area gain, providing the 'most robust estimate of forest change available'.
