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| Deforestation |
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| This jungle was burnt to the ground in southern Mexico. Who knows how many organisms were affected. www.wikipedia.org |
| What is this about? -Deforestation is the cutting down, burning, or destroying of the worlds population of indeginious trees. Deforestation is a major concern because it is a global issue that for the most part is happening unchecked. |
| Why is it considered a problem? -Three words; the carbon cycle. Trees absorb much of the CO2 in our atmosphere, and when they are burnt and destroyed, those CO2 molecules are released into the air, further increasing the greenhouse effect. Also, trees are an important sourcfe of oxygen to humans, as well as the homes to hundreds of thousands of animals. |
| Pros and Cons List |
| What is the government doing? -Government regulations has put a major stop to much of the deforestation in some south american countries, but on the big scale deforestation is far from being controlled. Poor African nations who need the money from the wood and cattle farming refuse to do anything about the widespread devestation. Some scientists believe that by the end of the century(2100 A.D.) nearly 90% of the the worlds rainforests will have been destroyed. |
| How does this effect the enviornment? -Deforestation can absolutly ruin an enviornemt. Countless animal species can and are becoming extinct due to the rapid loss to their homes. Due to soil erosion much of the deforested areas are becoming deserts through desertification andnearby lakes are being silted through soil erosion. The affects of deforestation reach out far past just trees. It affecets the entire enviornment, from the ground up. |
| Possible solutions and what can consumers do? -use wood sparingly. Do not light a fire every time the temperature drops below 50 degrees. Be energy efficient and insulate your home. Also by simply planting indigenous trees occasionally in a local park or in your yard can help the enviornment greatly. (www.botany.uwc.ac.za/html) |
| Final thought!(my opinion on the matter) -Deforestation is a major enviornemntal problem on a global scale. Deforestation does has some benifits, but the cost is just too high. It is up to us to put a stop to the rapid loss of forests, before it's too late. |
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| Pro(s) -cattle farming helps economy -wood used as important export |
| Con(s) -soil erosion -desertification -animal extinciton -green house gases released -souce of oxygen depleted |
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