Commercially Accessible Rainforest Area data sourced from:
State of the Forests Papua New Guinea 2014
Published by the University of Papua New Guinea, Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea 2015
Web-Portal by Climate Change and Development Authority and Forest Authority
The Island of New Guinea is the largest tropical island in the world and contains the third largest tropical rainforest after Amazon Basin and Congo basin. Papua New Guinea (PNG) is a well-known centre for biological endemism and diversification. Most forests in PNG are under customary ownership and play an important role in sustaining the traditional subsistence livelihoods of most of the population. Currently PNG’s forests are relatively intact. PNG’s forest covers 80% of the country’s land area and 60% of the forest are undisturbed.
FAO has been monitoring the world's forests at 5 to 10 year intervals since 1946.
The Global Forest Resources Assessments (FRA) are now produced every five years in an attempt to provide a consistent approach to describing the world's forests and how they are changing. The Assessment is based on two primary sources of data: Country Reports prepared by National Correspondents and remote sensing that is conducted by FAO together with national focal points and regional partners.
PNG has a total of about 46.9 million hectare of which 77.8% is forested with 13 natural forest
types and forest plantations with various species planted. The second major land
use in PNG is cropland, which covers 11.0% of the total land area. Grassland covers 5.3% and
wetland comprised 4.8% of the total land mass. Other Land including bare soil and rock covers
0.2% of the total land area. Settlements including villages and cities cover 0.9% of the land area.
Source: Papua New Guinea’s National REDD+ Forest Reference Level 2017
What can be learnt from the past? A history of the forestry sector in Papua New Guinea
The current legal and institutional framework of the forest sector in Papua New Guinea