The deliberate clearance of forest area is known as deforestation. Forests have been cleared for agriculture, animal grazing, and the production of wood for building, manufacture, and fuel throughout history and into the present.
Globally, deforestation has significantly changed the terrain. Approximately 2,000 years ago, forests covered 80% of Western Europe; today, that percentage is only 34%. Between the 1600s and the 1870s, over half of North America’s eastern woods were cleared for agriculture and lumber. Over the previous 4,000 years, China has lost vast tracts of its woods; today, just over 20% of the country is covered in trees. There previously were forests across much of Earth.
The majority of deforestation that occurs nowadays is caused by roads being built or upgraded into woods in order to increase their accessibility for exploitation. In the tropics, slash-and-burn agriculture is a major cause of deforestation. By burning vast tracts of forest, farmers may use the ash from the fire to fertilize their crops. But the farmers only stay on the land for a few years before moving on to start the process again somewhere else.
More carbon dioxide may be emitted into the atmosphere as a result of deforestation. This is due to the fact that carbon is chemically trapped in trees’ wood and is taken up by them from the atmosphere during photosynthesis. This carbon is released back into the atmosphere as carbon dioxide when trees are burned. With fewer nearby trees to provide shade in the carbon dioxide this green house accumulates in the atmosphere and accelerates global warming.
The biodiversity of the planet is also threatened by deforestation. There are many different kinds of plants and animals found in tropical forests. Many of the species may become extinct as a result of forest clearing or fires. There are scientists who claim that a mass extinction event is already underway.
More quickly, a forest’s soil may become more vulnerable to erosion if trees are lost. As a result, the forest changes from a closed, wet habitat to an open, dry one, making the remaining plants more susceptible to fire.
Causes of Deforestation are Infrastructure development, logging, urbanization, and agricultural growth are the main causes of deforestation. Significant side effects of this procedure include increased greenhouse gas emissions, disturbed water cycles, biodiversity loss, soil erosion, and negative effects on indigenous communities. Numerous plant and animal species are in jeopardy as forests are cut and their habitats are lost. As soil erosion gets worse, water quality and agricultural productivity are impacted. In addition, disturbances in water cycles may result in floods and droughts, which can have a negative effect on human settlements and ecosystems. By releasing stored carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and accelerating global warming, deforestation also plays a major role in climate change.
Solutions to deforestation include sustainable land management, promoting reforestation and afforestation, enforcing stricter logging regulations, supporting indigenous land rights, and fostering international cooperation through initiatives like REDD+. These approaches aim to preserve forests, maintain biodiversity, and mitigate the impacts of deforestation on ecosystems and communities.
Here is a motivational quote on tree written by means of Krishz. Hope you all like this –
“A solitary sheet of paper does not decide our future” may be it is feasible but for a single sheet of paper we demolish the future of tree…!!
Written by Krishz
Date : 2nd April 2024
Acknowledging “The Deforestation Silent Victims”