Tropical deforestation rates are uncertain, but probably exceed 130,000 km2 per year. About 40 percent of forests are relatively undisturbed by human activity, though nearly half of these are likely to be developed soon. Nearly all forests in Europe and the United States are under some degree of management. Roads are a useful proxy indicator of habitat fragmentation and degradation. The world's expanding road network is opening up remote forests to logging, mining, and pioneer settlement.
Roads also increase hunting and poaching.
The area burned by natural forest fires is now insignificant in comparison with human-initiated fires. Tropical forest fires have increased in area and intensity in recent years, because of drought, clearance for agriculture, and land tenure disputes. Information status and needs National level forest maps are often outdated and forest inventories unreliable in developing countries. Global estimates of forest area are complicated by different definitions of forest land and deforestation. Remote sensing data expected to become available in the next few years should improve the information base.