Five Tips For Preventing Deforestation
Deforestation is one of the biggest challenges our environment faces, and dealing with deforestation seems to be one of the biggest environmental problems at the moment. Are there ways to prevent deforestation, and reverse some of the damage?
Fortunately, there are some ways that we, as individuals, can do. The idea is that if we practice certain behaviors, some will have a global impact, and some will have a local impact, but together they’ll all help.
These 5 tips will help you make your personal contribution to preventing deforestation.
1. Plant trees. While you won’t be replacing the Amazon rain forest in your own backyard, you can replace a small part of the oxygen that deforestation takes away. The more trees you plant, the more of the rain forest you replace in your own yard. Consider giving live trees as gifts and encouraging others to help fight deforestation.
2. Recycle everything you can, from books and paper to shopping bags. If your neighborhood has curbside recycling, start recycling your glass, paper and plastic. And if you really want to keep stuff out of the landslide, join your local FreeCycle® group and share stuff you don’t want with people who do.
3. Join environmental groups and get involved. Pay attention to what’s going oan and ask how you can take action and how you can own this issue and make it an important part of your life.
4. Avoid products that require trees to be cut down just for one product. For instance, in Indonesia and Malaysia, palm trees are cut down for palm oil. You may find palm oil in chocolate, breads, and some toothpastes and soaps. Read labels and don’t buy products that use palm oil. Over the course of a year, you might save a few trees.
5. Don’t use firewood in your fireplace, unless you use deadwood gathered in the forest (not cut). Use coals in your fireplace instead. Avoid cutting firewood unless you know the tree fell naturally, and you’ve been invited to take the wood away.
You are not going to defeat global warming by yourself, or completely stop the deforestation of the Amazon rain forest. You’re only one person, of course. But you are one person, and as you take actions, if other people follow your example, you can have a very noticeable impact on the deforestation and other climate issues.
It’s hard to keep going with an issue like this and trying to do the right thing hwen you feel it doesn’t matter. Always remind yourself that it matters very much, and ask the people you care about to help you in your crusade. You may not make as large a difference as you would like, but gradually, with one person at a time pushing for change, change will come.
The good news is, while you’re only one person, there are millions of one persons out there, just like you, looking for ways to stop deforestation, replant the Amazon, and restore the environment. When enough band together, it will happen.