Position papers CASI Maha MUN - United Nations General

Country - Republic of Estonia Assembly

th
Committee - United Nations General Assembly 28 February 2020

Topic – Protection against deforestation and Global forest

degradation

What is Deforestation?

Deforestation is the permanent removal of trees to make room for

something besides forest. This can include clearing the land for agriculture
or grazing, or using the timber for fuel, construction or manufacturing.1

Forests cover more than 30% of the Earth's land surface, according to the World
Wildlife Fund. These forested areas can provide food, medicine and fuel for more than a billion
people. Worldwide, forests provide 13.4 million people with jobs in the forest sector, and
another 41 million people have jobs related to forests.
However, each year approximately 12 million hectares of forest are destroyed. This
deforestation, together with agriculture and other land use changes, is responsible for roughly
25 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions. Deforestation and land degradation also
undermine efforts to build resilience to climate impacts and threaten forest dwelling
communities.2
Across the world, the production of beef, soy, palm oil, rubber and other soft
commodities is a major driver of deforestation leading to about 7 million hectares of forest loss
per year. As well, this production leads to biodiversity loss and the decline of wildlife
populations, freshwater depletion and greenhouse gas emissions.
Therefore, the world urgently needs to move towards sustainable land use models that
separate deforestation from agricultural production, rehabilitate degraded land and include
smallholder farmers in global agricultural value chains. Such an agricultural system better
balances the need for economic growth and jobs with the necessity of increasing climate
resilience, emission reduction and better forest protection.
But yet, 800 million people currently go hungry every day. More food needs to be
produced over the coming 40 years than has been collectively produced to date in order to feed
an estimated 9.8 billion people by 2050. However, if business-as-usual practises continue, this
will exacerbate the environmental impact by 50 to 90 percent, risking planetary boundaries
defined as a safe operating space for humanity3

1
(Derouin 2019)
2
(UN Environment n.d.)
3
(UN Environment Programme 2020)

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Position papers CASI Maha MUN - United Nations General
Country - Republic of Estonia Assembly
th
Committee - United Nations General Assembly 28 February 2020

Many leaders have already glimpsed the potential for renewable energy and nature-
based assets. But for the world to see a true transformation in forest management, forests need
to become a universal political priority.
Estonia’s citizens enjoy one of the cleanest air in the world, which is in large part due
to the fact that more than 50% of our territory is covered with forests.
In addition, 98% of Estonians have access to quality drinking water and majority of
water bodies are in a good status.
This has not always been the case. Only 25 years ago, when Estonia regained its
independence, our pollution indicators were critically high. However, by adopting modern
environmental protection measures, we managed to turn these negative developments around.4
The Forest Act (last revised in 2003) provides the legal framework for the management
of the forests. According to the Forest Act, cutting areas and dead parts of the forest must be
forested with various means of regeneration – forest planting, sowing and additional planting
together with additional maintenance of the plants.
Based on the Forest Act, the Environmental Board (under the Ministry of Environment)
supervises the regeneration of forests, assessing in the course of an expert’s assessment of
reforestation whether the forest owner has performed their duties. If regeneration measures are
not applied or regeneration is insufficient then the owner’s attention is drawn to this fact.
Failure to react to the notices means failure to comply with the Forest Act and sanctions may
be applied in this case.
We also set up our tax system in such a way that revenue from environmental fees and
taxes – for example air pollution, waste management, and use of resources – is reinvested into
environmentally sound, resource efficient and eco-innovative solutions through project-based
grants. This form of circular economy offers a more sustainable model by using all resources
efficiently – not only raw materials, but also waste.
We urge the Committee members and Chair persons to look at encouraging the member
states to implement regeneration techniques and frame laws to encourage reforestation and
circular economy.

4
(Siim Kiisler 2018)

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Position papers CASI Maha MUN - United Nations General
Country - Republic of Estonia Assembly
th
Committee - United Nations General Assembly 28 February 2020

References
Derouin, Sarah. 2019. “Deforestation: Facts, Causes & Effects.” Live Science: The Most
Interesting Articles, Mysteries & Discoveries. 06 November. Accessed February 27,
2020. https://www.livescience.com/27692-deforestation.html.
n.d. “UN Environment.” Why do forests matter? Accessed February 27, 2020.
https://www.unenvironment.org/explore-topics/forests/why-do-forests-matter.
UN Environment Programme. 2020. Financing Sustainable Land Use For People And Planet.
UN Environment Programme, 28. Accessed February 27, 2020.
https://wedocs.unep.org/bitstream/handle/20.500.11822/31216/FSLU.pdf?sequence=1
&isAllowed=y.
Siim Kiisler, Minister of Environment. 2018. “National Statement of Estonia at the third
session of the United Nations Environment Assembly.” UN Environment Assembly. 11
January. Accessed February 27, 2020.
https://web.unep.org/environmentassembly/estonia.

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