Forests cover around ‘30% of the world’s land surface’ and are therefore an incredibly important part of biodiversity and the ecosystem. However, humans cutting them down results in releasing more CO2 into the air and harming the climate.
Why We Need Forests
Forests are important in protecting biodiversity, regulating ecosystems, and they ‘play an integral part in the carbon cycle.’ Not only do they provide beautiful views, they are essential for our planet’s health and future; they ‘contribute to soil and water conservation, carbon storage and clean air.’ They provide shelter and protection for life on earth and ‘more than half the world’s land-based plants and animals, and three-quarters of all birds, live in and around forests.’ Without forests, the entire ecosystem begins to collapse. By cutting down our trees and forests, we release CO2 into the air and contribute to climate change. Protecting forests must become a priority in order to keep our planet alive.
Deforestation and The Greenhouse Effect
Simply put, deforestation ‘contributes 12-20% of global greenhouse gas emissions.’ Greenhouse gases are released in the earth’s atmosphere and they trap heat. Without these gases creating this greenhouse effect, ‘temperatures would drop to as low as -18ºC (-0.4ºF); too cold to sustain life of earth.’ However, humans are dramatically increasing the release of greenhouse gases through harmful activities such as deforestation, and this is rapidly changing the earth’s natural greenhouse effect and causing harm to our planet. Another harmful effect of deforestation is that it can cause some tropical forests ‘the loss of as many as 100 species a day.’ Many ‘scientists agree greenhouse gases are the cause of global warming and climate change.’
What Can We Do?
Reducing greenhouse gases cannot be done overnight, but we can all play a part in saving our environment. This can be done ‘from simple changes, like reusing and recycling, to bigger lifestyle decisions like switching to electric vehicles.’ Moving on to renewable energy sources such as wind and solar can mitigate greenhouse gases and help protect our planet.