Deforestation is one of the biggest threats to the world's forests. The process of deforestation can take a very long time, or it can be triggered by very little change in a specific area. While some rapid changes can be good for the earth's climate, such as reducing the amount of droughts and creating habitat for wildlife, too much deforestation and loss of rainforests can have devastating effects on our world. A recent study showed that if current trends continue, within 50 years there will be virtually no rainforests left in the Amazon region.
Cutting down trees is a big problem for a number of reasons, not least of which is the effect it has on the environment. Trees provide food, clothing, fuel and shelter, all of which are vital to human life. Cutting down trees is not only detrimental to these aspects of life, but it also reduces the levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Increased atmospheric carbon dioxide levels are believed to be one of the leading causes of climate change.
Global warming is another reason why deforestation is becoming an even bigger threat. Laid out over many years, even small amounts of deforestation can significantly increase a climate's temperature. This increase has already been linked to some extreme weather events around the world. In the Amazon, this effect has already become quite familiar, with recent research suggesting that the shrinking of the Amazonian forest has led to the accelerated increase of temperatures. The consequences of this warming trend, if unchecked, will lead to very serious climate change, and could even lead to the melting of the Arctic Ocean.
Cutting down rainforest trees is also bad for the people who live in those areas, as it makes it easier for them to extract water and other natural resources from their land without consulting local people. Extracting water for agricultural purposes can release large amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, leading to climate change. Water that is used for drinking and cooking can also be taken away by the process of deforestation, leading to a shortage of the commodity in some parts of the world.
Deforestation has also resulted in the death of millions of trees worldwide, leading to an alarming reduction in the amount of oxygen in the air and a drastic increase in the frequency of natural disasters. This is bad news for the planet, as forests act as one of the main sources of food and other natural substances needed for the maintenance of a diverse biodiversity. If the habitat of these species of animals is destroyed, it is highly likely that they will die off entirely, along with other life forms that rely on those same forests for survival. In addition to this, deforestation leads to an absence of habitats for a range of wildlife, and so climate change will most likely worsen as more animals are pushed to the open road.
Private land owners, for the most part, own the majority of the trees in the world. This means that unless you happen to live in a relatively remote location, you have probably got your hands on some or even most of the trees being chopped down to make room for urban development. While there are organizations trying to save trees, sometimes there just isn't enough money to support their work in any significant way. For this reason, many private landowners are choosing to simply let their trees go. Whether this is a conscious effort or not, the consequences for the world and its environment are dire. Cutting down mature trees to make way for suburbs is not only hurting the environment but is also ignoring the fact that our very existence as a species on this planet is tied to trees and the ever-increasing mass of carbon dioxide that these trees release into the atmosphere.