Deforestation Effects on Humans, Animals, Plant Life, and Marine Life
Causes
- Trade is a big cause of deforestation, they want quicker ways to transport goods.
- Governments are staying out of the problem.
- Trees make a lot of important goods, and demands and profits are high for these products.
- Wood is a big fuel source, and has to be cut down to get.
- Desertification is caused from the loose soil, that is produced after trees are cut down.
- Extreme weather happens due to the climate change which is caused by deforestation.
- Climate change occurs from the carbon fumes released into the atmosphere from the cut down trees.
- Drought occurs from the climate change.
- Wildlife can’t survive out in the open, and have to go back into the forest to survive
- 80% of all forested areas has been compromised since 2003
- There has been a great increase in the amount of floods annually, because the soil is very permeable
- Deforestation also leads to landslides which can ruin people’s homes, or animals burrows or habitats.
- As rainforests are destroyed, it is estimated that 100 species become extinct every day, and between 5-10% of tropical rain forest species will become extinct over the next 50 years
- Soil is not anchored down by roots and trees, so there are more floods, washing away fertile soil used for farming.
- Now the soil cannot support plant life very well.
- Large amounts of carbon dioxide are released into the atmosphere.
- This causes global warming, or the “greenhouse” effect.
- Climate change affects crops, which affects what people eat, and how much money they make.
- Wood is becoming more scarce, a major fuel source for the people of Africa is disappearing.
- Since deforestation contributes to global warming, there are rising sea levels that will make people move from the coastlines.
- There are floods because the soil is not anchored down, it causes desertification.
Solutions
- Don’t waste energy, go “green”. By going green you can reduce the carbon footprint since deforestation produces a lot of it.
- Don’t buy goods with ingredients that are found in rainforests that they have to cut down to get.
- Protest, persuade the government to take action
- Some logging businesses plant two trees for each tree that they cut down.
- Reduce, Reuse, Recycle