Write an article on dwindling forest cover not only threatens the habitat of millions of species but also endangers water reserves
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Dwindling Forests or Dwindling Chances To Live?
Franklin D. Roosevelt rightly said, “A nation that destroys its soils destroys itself. Forests are the lungs of our land, purifying the air and giving fresh strength to our people. ” The present condition of forests in the world, especially developing countries is pathetic and miserable. Forests are the source of life. They are the giving angels. They give man oxygen, rains, wood, fruit, make the world look so beautiful, yet the sinister man kills them! Who will be more inhumane than man himself? Cutting of forests ultimately endangers man’s own existence.
Most of the world oxygen that the animal species including man inhale is produced in the tropical rainforests. More than half of the world's estimated 10 million species of plants, animals and insects live in the tropical rainforests. They are important to the environment as they recycle water and regulate levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere through photosynthesis. They are the world's full-time regulators of air and water. Their cutting will disturb the natural water cycles which will lead to the shortage of fresh-water in the water reserves of the world.
The tropical rainforests are also very important because they are home to an enormous number of plants and animals. Even more importantly, they are home to many unique plants and animals that do not exist anywhere else in the world. If the tropical rainforests were to be destroyed, so would the homes of all these species. Without a home, many of these species could become extinct.
Deforestation has many disadvantages. One of the major disadvantages of deforestation is that it disrupts the water cycle. As a consequences most of the water reserves are being replenished less often, which is affecting all forms of life. Trees are responsible for drawing up water from the soil and releasing moisture into the atmosphere. Deforestation causes a disturbance in the water cycle and makes the environment drier. Climate change is a severe outcome of the excessive cutting down of trees. Forests lock up atmospheric carbon during the process of photosynthesis. Trees contain a major portion of carbon from the atmosphere.
Cutting of the forest cover has a negative effect on the environment. It results in an increase in the amount of carbon and other greenhouse gases in the environment. Burning of forests results in the emission of a large amount of carbon dioxide into the air. Carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases like the oxides of nitrogen and methane are known to trap atmospheric heat, thus increasing the average temperature of the Earth's surface. This increase in the temperature near the Earth's surface and oceans is termed as global warming.
So, we see how crucial these forests are for evolution and the smooth running of all the life forms on the planet. They are indeed the power-house of evolution.