Logging In The Amazon Rainforest

Deforestation is the permanent destruction of forests in order to make the land available for other uses. Half of the world’s tropical forests have been cleared or degraded. Some people ask why forests’ are being cleared. It is typically done to make more land available for other things like housing, cash crops, oil, and cattle ranching. Most of what everyone does with deforestation is said to be illegal. Common methods of deforestation are clear cutting and burning trees. The burning method can be done either quickly or slowly. Quickly for plantation use or more slowly using the slash and burn technique. The many reasons why farmers and other people do that is to get money to feed there family or like it was stated early, to make room for growing crops or livestock. Forests are cut down for many reasons, but most of them are related to people’s need to provide for there families or money. Logging operations, which provide the world’s paper and wood products, also cut a number of trees down each year. Loggers, some of them doing it illegally, also build roads to get to more and more remote forests, which leads to further deforestation. Not all deforestation is a terrible thing and intentional. Deforestation comes in handy when in need to build a new oil place. There are a lot of natural factors that play into deforestation like wildfires and subsequent overgrazing. Most of the deforestation occurs in the tropics, which is a terrible place because they have poor soil for

The first step to solving any problem is to find the source. In this situation, the culprits are miners and loggers. “Commercial logging companies cut down mature trees that have been selected for their timber… a large hole is left in the canopy and complete regeneration takes hundreds of years” ("The Causes of Rainforest”). Millions of quality trees are cut down every day for production of wood products, leaving an unlivable gap in their place. Miners are not any better; they begin by clearing land for their projects and then create roads which cut through the rainforest ("The Causes of Rainforest”). These actions disrupt the rainforest, and innocent trees are sacrificed for accessibility. Between these two professions, forests stand no chance of survival.

Deforestation can be a direct result of industries such as oil extraction, selective logging, and infrastructure projects. For example, selective logging for trees such as mahogany and ipe results in damage to nearby trees. Due to the logging and damaged trees, canopy gaps become larger which increases wind and sun exposure. The area becomes much drier and therefore more prone to wildfires. The collective damage significantly reduces the amount of stored carbon, these logged areas contain 40% less stored carbon than undisturbed tropical forests. Deforestation can also have devastating effects on local populations, who rely on rainforests for their natural resources such as food and shelter. In addition, rainforests provide natural services including erosion prevention, flood control, and pollination.

Dr. Seuss once wrote that, “unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It 's not.” One of the most prevalent environmental issue in the world today is the issue of deforestation. “Deforestation is when trees are chopped down to clear a forest so the land can be used for other purposes.” (Deforestation Facts and Statistics) While learning the definition of deforestation may not seem like a significant issue in the world, one will find it alarming to know the statistics associated with deforestation. For example, by the year 2030, only ten percent of rainforests may be left (Deforestation Facts and Statistics). Although the lumber harvested from these rainforests across the world serve important purposes, it is unbelievable about the price nature has to pay. The bottom line is: Deforestation of the world’s rainforests is not worth the price paid and two ways to fix it is to push the government to support organizations that push for anti-deforestation and reforestation. =

One of the most prevalent issues in our world today is the issue of deforestation. Deforestation can be described as “the practice of clearing the natural forests for agriculture, logging, etc.” (Deforestation Statistics). After hearing the definition of deforestation, most people would not find this to be a very significant issue in the world, but after hearing the alarming statistics associated with deforestation, most would change their mind. For example, arguably the most shocking statistic is that deforestation has resulted in 80 percent of Earth’s forest cover being cut down (Deforestation Statistics). Although the lumber harvested from these rainforests across the world serve important purposes, I do not

Deforestation is one of the major subject in twenty first century. Humans have been deforestation the forest for thousands of years. Little we known about the tropical woodland and they are disappearing at an alarming rate. This is because it occurs mostly in Africa where there are little to no inhabitants. Leaving us in capable of preventing it. Deforestation is mainly caused by clearing the forest and woodland for farming, logging, housing, building roads. If we do not stop cutting trees and stop deforestation, result could be catastrophic.

Deforestation dates back to the late 1960s when Brazil began to cut down forests at an alarming rate. According to Schwartzman, S. (2013) Brazil has cleared 18 percent of the original Amazon - an area the size of France. In 2005 Brazil’s deforestation rate began to fall, which is good news because it went from 27,000 square kilometers to about 4,500 square kilometers. This is a good thing because if more rainforests are cleared, lower rainfall, combined with climate change-related drought could turn a large amount of the remaining forest in to savanna. The leading cause for the deforestation in the Amazon was to make way for cattle ranching. The figure above shows the sq. km deforested, per year and it shows what years have the highest in deforestation. Between 1995 and 1996 Brazil has deforested around 300002 km.

The forest is a place filled with many wonders. Unfortunately, because of the effects deforestation it's quickly being consumed away, due to the need of agriculture, livestock, and also the need to create housing, according to the. According to Alina Bradford a contributing writer for live science she writes in her article deforestation fact, cause and effects this is quoted,

    When people get sick they believe it’s because they didn’t took the precaution they should have taken in order for them not to get sick or anything but in reality it’s the environment that they are living in that is making them sick. At first people say it’s other people that are making them sick, yes is true but what is really causing all this sickness is deforestation. What’s causing deforestation to increase, is it the people in the world or just the world itself? Deforestation is a permanent destruction of indigenous woodlands.  There is a lot happening due to deforestation. The world is falling apart, many disasters are happening because of deforestation. In the past couple of years the world has been deteriorating with earthquakes, hurricanes and tornadoes but what are people doing to make it stop? The world is becoming a chaotic place to live in. The world is being deforested everyday, every hour, every minute, and every second that passes by and the people that live in the world is not doing anything to make the conditions of the world get any better. The world is getting destroyed without people knowing that it is their own selves the ones that are getting destroyed as well. People need to start finding new ways to make deforestation stop. Deforestation is increasing due to human activities, death caused by diseases is increasing, the risk of extinction for animals and plants is

The deforestation of the Amazon creates space for agriculture, dams, mines, and infrastructure (Renick, Shirlick, Ariav 2016). These developments impact both the state as well as the indigenous people living in the Amazon Rainforest. Within Brazil, intense deforestation began in the 1960s as the Brazilian government offered incentives to for people to move into the Amazon. These incentives were combined with more efficient tools which led to an increase in intensity of deforestation (Renick, Shirlick, Ariav 2016). In 1988, the indigenous people were given a right to their land. This has been very effective decreasing deforestation (Krogh).

When most people think about deforestation, they think about trees being cut down, and that is pretty much it, but there is so much more to deforestation. Rainforests in the amazon and in Brazil today are vanishing at an alarming rate all due to deforestation and they are cut down because they are used as commercial purposes such as agriculture, livestock, and logging. Countries like the Democratic Republic of Congo and Brazil argue and state that their economies largely depend upon these industries and that the obliteration of the rainforests is an economic necessity. However, the deforestation of this valuable resource is primarily harming the economic well-being of rainforest countries more than it is boosting their economy. Deforestation results from removal of trees without inadequate reforestation, and that results in heavy declines in biodiversity and habitat, wood for fuel and industrial use, and quality of life.

Trees and any plantation for that matter are often taken for granted as they provide many of the essentials such as photosynthesis regulation, habitat, food, and even save ground to build construction. However as more people demand more, more space will be needed and cutting away the trees for humans to use. Deforestation is the act of cutting and clearing a large area of trees. It is the cause of extreme damage to the ecosystem and sustainability of life. Deforestation is negatively affecting the interaction between the water cycle, soil sustainability, and trees stability.

The rainforest is one of Earth's most valuable resources and at the destruction rate, people need to stop ignoring this problem. “Around the world, Tropical Rainforests are being destroyed at a rate of 80 to 90 acres each minute.”(Thompson, Heather) The rainforest is home of many living creatures and provide the world with many supplies such as, food, clean water, and housing, but soon the population of those living creatures will decrease and those supplies will be gone. People need to end deforestation globally because of the main effects it has on earth like the social, environmental, and loss of different species.

One of the primary and notable effects of Deforestation is Climate change, specifically in Global Warming. Climate change is defined as the changing in our planet’s temperature and is considered as the effect of deforestation. On the other hand, global warming refers to the fact that the average temperature on Earth is significantly rising and the period of warming is occurring more rapidly than before. Losing trees and forests will affect the carbon sink and the greenhouse gas in the atmosphere, resulting in more carbon dioxide appeared, more heated being trapped. As a result, the global temperature is significantly rising, hence, causing climate change and global warming. The author of the article “Climatic Effects of Amazonian Deforestation: Some Results from ABRACOS” concluded that “Observations at the local scale show that deforestation produces an immediate change in the surface climate. The reduced evaporation and increased sensible heat flux in dry season pasture produce the strongest effect, with higher daytime temperatures being the most obvious feature” (Gash & Nobre, 1997).

The rainforests have been suffering from habitat destruction caused by human impacts such as deforestation, which then cause the destruction of entire rainforest ecosystems. The causes for the human activity of deforestation include grazing for animals, wood used for fires & timber, pulp for making paper, road construction, and agriculture for poor farmers. The effects that deforestation has on an ecosystem include climate change, destruction of habitats and ecosystems, global warming, the extinction of animals, and the disruption of matter cycles. There is an abundant amount of undeniable proof to support the claim that human impact is the cause of habitat destruction in the tropical rainforests. As UXL Encyclopedia of Science states, “Agriculture is the biggest cause of habitat loss.” The human activity of agriculture and deforestation for goods have devastating effects on rainforest ecosystems, stripping them of their resources, organisms, stability, and ecosystem productivity. Another source to back up this claim that The Gale Encyclopedia of Science states, “Various human activities result in net losses of forest area and therefore contribute to deforestation.” Also, 10% of CO2 emissions come from deforestation, according to Tropical Deforestation and Global Warming. This shows that, undeniably, humans have contributed to not only deforestation, but all of the harmful effects that come along with it.