Much of World's Tropical Forests Managed Poorly

Large swaths of the world's tropical forests have been officially shielded from deforestation, but an international organization says that may not be enough. Much of the land kept for permanent use as forests isn't being managed sustainably—or being managed at all, according to a new report by the International Tropical Timber Organization. A total of 1.88 billion acres have been marked "permanent forest estate," but only 10% of that land is being managed sustainably, the organization said today.

The ITTO is composed of 33 member nations who together account for 1.42 billion hectares of tropical forest, or 85% of the world's total. (More rainforest stories.)