Find out the latest in forest news!

“The world’s standing forests may be protecting continents against cyclonic storms, such as hurricanes, typhoons and cyclones,” a new report by the Center for International Forestry Research suggests. A new theory argues that vegetation and tree cover may influence rainfall, and reduce the intensity and frequency of tornadoes, droughts and floods.

An 84-year-old korina tree had survived being shot with a .22 caliber bullet, struck by lighting and damage from Hurricane Wilma, but Hurricane Irma proved to be too much for the tallest tree in Broward County. At 134 feet tall, it was certified as a Florida Champion Tree by the Florida Forest Service in 2016. No one was hurt when the tree came down, but part of Florida’s forestry history has been lost.

Researchers at Wildlands & Woodlands, a Harvard University forestry research group, have found that the six New England states are losing forested land at an alarming rate. “It’s a drip, drip, drip, and it amounts to 24,000 acres a year,” says Robert Perschel, one of the report’s authors.

One effective way to preserve the rainforest is to engage in what’s called “community forest concessions,” granting property and management rights to local residents, researchers at the Ohio State University have found. By granting community members a direct interest in forests in their own backyard, rates of deforestation slowed dramatically compared to areas managed by nonresidents.