I get a big kick out of the "But what if I have to go to ground?" threads. It's not a fear I share. Rather, I would avoid camping in places without trees, or take a tent instead, but not both.
But it got me thinking, are there places in the world where the worst fears of What If I Have To Go To Grounders will be realized?
A quick Google and I found a list of countries by forest area (as a percentage of land area). Percentages were compiled using information from the CIA's World Factbook 2011:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...by_forest_area
The chart is sortable so if you click on % of land area you'll see the places with the least amount of trees.
Not surprisingly, the Middle East and African countries top the list of countries with the fewest amount of trees. However, there are some surprises in this list (at least they surprised me):
1. Iceland (1%) & Greenland (0%) - I didn't know that Iceland had no trees. I wonder if that's because Iceland is made of, well, ice. And Greenland? Isn't it supposed to be green?
2. Haiti is only 1.5% forested? Did the poor people burn all the trees for fuel? Um, probably so. The Dominican Republic is poor too, but they have 27.5% forest.
3. Singapore, only 3% forested.
4. The CIA says Uruguay is 4% forested, but the UN thinks 10% is forested. Either way, I expected a lot more trees. Then again, Uruguay is one of the most developed nations in Latin America. When development comes, the trees leave, I guess.
5. The United Kingdom is only 11.76% forested. Geez, Shewie, do you guys take turns sharing the same two trees?
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