Question

give the factors affecting deforestation. five points​

Answer 1

1. Answer:
2. Mining. The increase of mining on tropical forests is furthering damage due to the rising demand and high mineral prices. ...
3. Paper. ...
4. Overpopulation. ...
5. Logging. ...
6. Agriculture Expansion & Livestock Ranching. ...
7. Cattle ranching and deforestation are strongest in Latin America. ...
8. Climate Change.

Answer 2

Answer:

Patterns of Human Settlement

When the islands were first settled by outside peoples, forests covered a large proportion of the land area. At first, people lived largely from hunting and gathering on forested lands--collecting fruit and nuts, hunting wild game, and using wood for fuel and building shelter. The first inhabitants introduced relatively minor changes to the natural ecosystem. Traditional agricultural practices worked more in harmony than in conflict with the natural systems. Food production methods did not greatly increase levels of erosion and sedimentation and had built-in conservation measures. In the Truk Islands, for example, traditional farmers planted the lower slopes with breadfruit and coconut trees and left the upper slopes left intact. This is an example of a simple agroforestry system that provided soil conservation and protection.

With colonization of the islands, much forest land was taken over for the establishment of plantations, or trees were cut for lumber and fuelwood. Some new tree species, including teak and kapok, were introduced by European settlers. Many of these were produced for the export market.

These changes in land use led to a reduction in the extent of natural forested lands (Poore, 1983). In many cases, little attention was given to the value of natural forests and little effective control over forest clearing or timber harvesting was exercised.

In recent years, the uncontrolled clearing and harvesting of forests has been widely recognized as a serious environmental and economic problem, and reforestation has become a major focus of many island policies.

The following sections outline the major natural factors that influence forestry systems. It is important for the forestry worker to understand the relationships among these factors, and to realize that they play a role in determining the feasibility of any forestry effort.

 

Environmental Considerations

The tropical region of the Pacific Islands encompasses a wide variety of vegetation, types of habitats, topography, climatic patterns, and soils. Details are presented in Hadley and Lanly, 1983; King, 1979; and Wadsworth and Mergen, 1980.

The nature of the vegetation that grows naturally or that can be successfully cultivated in a tropical area is largely determined by the local ecosystem and its component factors--climate, soil, and topography. But the vegetation itself influences the formation and nature of the soil, as we shall see later on. Vegetation provides organic matter and protects soil from the effects of rainfall, sunlight, and wind.

Lush, luxuriant tropical rain forest vegetation is often thought to indicate high fertility of the soil base. This can be misleading, as the soil may have only a very thin layer of rich topsoil. When the vegetative cover is removed, the soils may become rapidly depleted and unproductive unless it is protected by some other means.

There are substantial differences in topography or terrain among the Pacific islands, ranging from rugged, high islands to limestone terraces and volcanic slopes. Some have flat coastal areas and steep inland mountains. Others, such as the Marshall Island group, are made up of low islands and coral atolls.

 

Climate

A variety of tropical climates results from wind systems and air mass movements. In general, there is a decrease in temperature as one moves from the equator toward the poles. This general pattern, however, is greatly modified by the physical arrangements of continents, land masses, and oceans, as well as by land relief and the type of ground cover. The combination of these variable factors create microclimates, which can be very different from one neighboring area to another.

The term tropical climate includes such greatly different climates as those of dense rain forests, savannas, dry deciduous forests, bush, desert steppes, and alpine meadows.

The islands of the Pacific encompass four major climatic types: equatorial, tropical, mountain, and monsoon. Generally, these types are characterized by seasonal patterns of wet and dry periods. Most of the Western Pacific island climates feature high humidity and rainfall.

Among the major climatic factors important to forests and tree growth are rainfall patterns, temperature, availability of sunlight (solar radiation), humidity, and winds. Each of these factors may be subject to seasonal changes as well. Information on the specific climatic patterns of any particular area should be available through a branch of the Weather Service or other climate-related research institution, airports, or government offices. The community worker should make a point of talking to local farmers to find out how seasonal changes affect their work cycles. The relationship between climatic factors and forestry efforts is described below.