New forests spur rain forest debate

CHILIBRE, Panama, Jan. 30 (UPI) -- Farm acreage in Latin America is being overrun by jungles, officials say, sparking debate among scientists about how urgent it is to save primeval rain forests.

New "secondary" forests -- from small acreage to much larger swaths of farmland -- are emerging in Latin America, Asia and other tropical regions worldwide, The New York Times reported Friday. One estimate indicates for every acre of rain forest destroyed each year, more than 50 acres of new forest are growing in the tropics on land that once was farmed, logged or sacked by natural disaster.

Scientists said the new forests could counter the effects of rain forest destruction by absorbing carbon dioxide, the leading gas linked to global warming, as well as provide habitat for endangered species.

"Biologists were ignoring these huge population trends and acting as if only original forest has conservation value, and that's just wrong," Joe Wright, a senior scientist at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Chilibre, Panama, told the Times. The Smithsonian is studying newly abandoned farmland in central Panama to learn about the regeneration of forests there.

Other scientists disagree, saying protection of rain forests is critical in the face of threats from commercial farming and logging.

"Yes, there are forests growing back, but not all forests are equal," said Bill Laurance, another Smithsonian senior scientist.

"Our knowledge of these forests is still rather limited," said Wulf Killmann, director of forestry products and industry at the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization, which is assessing the scope of secondary forest.