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Between 1945 and 1975 forest cover in Thailand declined from 61% to 34% of the country's land area. Over the next 11 years, Thailand lost close to 28% of all of its remaining forests. This means that the country lost 3.1% of its forest cover each year over that period. An estimate by the World Wildlife Fund concluded that between 1973 and 2009, Thailand's forests declined by 43%. The Thai Highlands in northern Thailand, the most heavily forested region of the country, were not subject to central government control and settlement until the second half of the 19th century when British timber firms, notably the Bombay Burmah Trading Corporation and the Borneo Company Limited, entered the teak trade in the late-1880s and early-1890s.〔Barton, G.A. and B.M. Bennett. (2010) (Forestry as Foreign Policy: Anglo-Siamese Relations and the Origins of Britain's Informal Empire in the Teak Forests of Northern Siam, 1883–1925 34 (1): 65-86 )〕 The Royal Forest Department, created in 1896 and headed by a British forester until 1925, sought to conserve the forests against the worst business practices of British, Thai, and Chinese timber firms who worked in the region. During the 20th century, deforestation in Thailand was driven primarily by agricultural expansion,〔Delang, C.O. (2002) (Deforestation in Northern Thailand: the Result of Hmong Swidden Farming Practices or Thai Development Strategies? ) ''Society and Natural Resources'' 15 (6): 483-501]〕 although teak deforestation happened as a direct result of timber-cutting. Much of Thailand's recent economic improvement can be attributed to increased agricultural production for export. The country was able to increase production by clearing much of their forest and converting it to cropland. The Thai government is beginning to emphasize forest restoration. == History of Thai forest management == *In 1896 the Ministry of the Interior established the Royal Forest Department to conserve forests and control revenue from the teak forests in northern Thailand. A British forester from Burma, Herbert Slade, served as the first director of the department. From 1896-1925 the Thai government and British foresters and businesses created an "informal empire" over the teak forests of northern Thailand. *In 1899 all forests were declared government property and all logging without payment to the Royal Forest Department was prohibited. *In 1956 The Forest Industry Organization was established to take over government control of industrial uses of Thai forests. *In 1962 the Thai government began to establish national parks and other forest conservation areas, their management was still under the jurisdiction of the Royal Forest Department. In the sixties there was a large shift in forest use in Thailand. Deforestation began to increase, but not due to the commercial uses of teak forests in the north, but rather increased agricultural exports from the south. *In the late-1960s the Thai government began to grant logging concessions, which required re-planting. They were poorly managed. *A military coup in 1976 led to political instability. The military began to clear forests to suppress rebel forces that had settled in the forests for protection. *The political instability left the government with little power to protect forests and illegal logging was pursued more heavily by villagers. During the height of illegal logging in Thailand it is estimated that somewhere between 50-75% of timber coming out of Thailand was obtained illegally. *In the 1980s the government took many steps to limit the speed at which Thailand's forests were disappearing. They set a target for 40% forest cover. To achieve this they initiated tree planting initiatives and leased some degraded forests to third parties to create logging plantations. *In 1988 a flood in southern Thailand finally set in motion a complete ban on all commercial logging that was put in place in 1989. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Deforestation in Thailand」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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