A Theoretical Argument on Deforestation

Christine Mwenisongole
Arusha Technical College, Tanzania
Email: christinelaston@gmail.com

Abstract: In addition to being an environmental issue, deforestation affects a variety of socioeconomic and demographic groups. Deforestation sparks an expanding array of interdisciplinary research and studies in academic fields, whether at the global, regional, national, subnational, or site level. The purpose of this theoretical paper was to discuss theories of deforestation and how these theories fit in the deforestation agenda. Three theories were used in this discussion. These theories are: Environmental Kuznets Curve, theory of forest transition and Land rent. The Environmental Kuznets Curve theory suggests that deforestation initially increases with economic development but eventually declines as societies become more environmentally conscious. The forest transition theory posits that deforestation follows a U-shaped curve, increasing during early development and then decreasing as countries reach higher income levels. In summary, the land use that generates the highest land rent or value will be the one that drives competition among land uses, if profit maximisation is the driving force. By going over deforestation theories, we can determine that their common goal is to solve the environmental degradations—namely, greenhouse gas emissions and biodiversity loss—caused by deforestation in the forestry industry. Policy makers might concentrate more on certain strategic variables that are defined within proximal and underlying theories by identifying and categorising the direct and indirect elements that contribute to deforestation.