How Deforestation Affects Us
We are used to thinking of deforestation as a cause of global warming and environmental disaster. While most of us understand, in a vague way, that the destruction of the Amazon rain forest is bad, we may not understand the full effects of deforestation, in the Amazon and other areas. For many people, it’s something we know a little about, but have not given a lot of thought.
It’s important to understand the damage deforestation causes. While your individual actions can’t stop deforestation, your understanding of the problem can contribute to a global solution.
Deforestation is the permanent removal of trees from very large areas of land. When we refer to “deforestation,” we’re usually talking about the Amazon rain forests, where loss of trees causes the most environmental damage, but any large-scale removal of trees is known as deforestation.
While concern about deforestation has increased in recent years, deforestation itself has increased by 8.5 percent from 2000-2005 over the rate from 1990-1995, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). FAO estimates a loss of 10.4 million hectares of tropical forest destroyed in the period between 2000 and 2005, compared to 10.14 million hectares in the same period ten years earlier.
Deforestation does not always happen in one large block of ground, but as a gradual incursion into and fragmentation of the forest. This destruction has many very serious side effects.
Many endangered species of plants and animals live in the rain forests, and destruction of their habitats threatens biodiversity and may lead to their extinction. We do not and cannot know what these extinctions will mean for the world, but they could possibly deprive us of medicinal plants that could greatly benefit many people.
When the forests are destroyed, the roots that once held soil in place are gone, and soil erodes quickly, which can cause silting of rivers and dams, among other problems. When the sediments deposit in the rivers, they can clog dams and reduce the flow of the rivers. No trees to stop water also means more frequent floods, as the water is not absorbed by the roots. And the erosion and rapidly moving water can lead to landslides, which can damage homes, destroy crops and threaten human safety.
Once the forests have been cleared several times, the land will no longer grow trees, and has become desert. This is called, suitably enough, desertification. The watersheds are also degraded, reducing the amount of water available for lowland communities. And coral reefs in the ocean are ruined due to the flooding and siltation.
As you may have noticed, none of this even includes the greenhouse effect and global warming. Deforestation increases the amount of carbon dioxide in the air, and threatens the ozone, resulting in global warming. This in itself is a very serious threat to the environment and the climate, but as you see, it is only one of the many threats posed by deforestation.
It is sometimes difficult to feel very concerned about something you don’t understand well. The more you know about deforestation, the more concerned you should feel.