The World: humans and wilderness
“ Analysis of the human footprint map indicates that 83% of the land's surface is influenced by one or more of the following factors: human population density greater than 1 person per square kilometer, within 15 km of a road or major river, occupied by urban or agricultural land uses, within 2 km of a settlement or a railway, and/or producing enough light to be visible regularly to a satellite at night. 98% of the areas where it is possible to grow rice, wheat or maize (according to FAO estimates) are similarly influenced.”
“ The last of the wild represent the largest, least influenced areas (defined as above) in all the biomes of the world in all the world's regions. They represent a practical starting place for long-term conservation, places where the full range of nature may still exist with a minimum of conflict with existing human structures.”
