Deforestation will lead us devastation.

 What is deforestation? What is the definition of deforestation and why is deforestation happening? Let’s figure out what are the causes and effects of deforestation?

What Is Deforestation?

Deforestation refers to the decrease in forest areas across the world that are lost for other uses such as agricultural croplands, urbanization, or mining activities. Greatly accelerated by human activities since 1960, deforestation has been negatively affecting natural ecosystems, biodiversity, and the climate. The UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization estimates the annual rate of deforestation to be around 1.3 million km2 per decade.


The Causes of Deforestation: Why Is Deforestation Happening?

Multiple factors, either of human or natural origin, cause deforestation. Natural factors include natural forest fires or parasite-caused diseases which can result in deforestation. Nevertheless, human activities are among the main causes of global deforestation. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization(FAO) , the expansion of agriculture caused nearly 80% of global deforestation, with the construction of infrastructures such as roads or dams, together with mining activities and urbanization, making up the remaining causes of deforestation. 

1. Agriculture is the Number 1 Cause of Deforestation (~80%)

Why is deforestation happening? According to the FAO , agriculture causes around 80% of deforestation. And how does agriculture cause so much deforestation? According to the same report, 33% of agriculture-caused deforestation is a consequence of subsistence agriculture – such as local peasant agriculture in developing countries. Commercial or industrial agriculture (field crops and livestock) cause around 40% of forest loss – in the search for space to grow food, fibers or biofuel (such as soybeans, palm oil, beef, rice, maize, cotton and sugar cane). It is also particularly interesting to note livestock is believed to be responsible for about 14% of global deforestation. The main reasons why have to do with the large areas require both to raise livestock but also to grow its (soy-based) food.



2. Deforestation Caused By New Constructions (~15%)

The construction of human infrastructures has also been driving deforestation. More specifically, 10% of deforestation can be attributed to new infrastructures that serve the current human lifestyle in four main ways: transportation, transformation and energy generation.

On one hand, roads, rails, ports or airports have been built to move all sorts of goods – from cereals and fruits to spices, minerals or fossil fuels – either directly to trade centers or to transformation sites. So while at first there were only fruit trees, roads soon arrived to allow transporting fruit to other regions. And while some goods were and are collected manually, others such as coal, oil, natural gas, biomass, but also meat, dairy or spirits, required the construction of large extraction, transportation and/or transformation infrastructures.



3. How Urbanization Is Causing Deforestation (~5%)

The populational shift that is leading people to move from rural areas to urban areas is also contributing to deforestation (5%, according to FAO). This urban growth – in which 68% of the world population is expected to live in cities by 2050 – is leading to an exponential growth of housing and consumption sites. And as cities become larger so they can host more people, they challenge the natural boundaries surrounding them, often leading to deforestation. This is one of the reasons why deforestation is happening



Deforestation Effects – How Does Deforestation Affect The Environment?

Deforestation has many consequences for natural ecosystems and it poses serious problems to the resilience of the planet.  Let’s take a look at the main effects of deforestation to better understand why it is bad for the planet.


1 – The Effects of Deforestation on Biodiversity

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The most known consequence of deforestation is its threat to biodiversity. In fact, forests represent some of the most veritable hubs of biodiversity. From mammals to birds, insects, amphibians or plants, the forest is home to many rare and fragile species.
80% of the Earth’s land animals and plants live in forests.

By destroying the forests, human activities are putting entire ecosystems in danger, creating natural imbalances, and putting Life at threat. The natural world is complex, interconnected, and made of thousands of inter-dependencies and among other functions, trees provide shade and colder temperatures for animals and smaller trees or vegetation which may not survive with the heat of direct sunlight. Besides, trees also feeding animals with their fruits while providing them with food and shelter they need to survive.

2 – The Effects of Deforestation on population 

Healthy  forests  support the  livelihoods  of 1.6  billion people globally, one billion of whom are among the world’s poorest. This means there are many people depending on forests for survival and using them to hunt and gather raw products for their small-scale agriculture processes. But in developing countries such as Borneo, Indonesia, Vietnam, Brazil, or Mexico, land tenure systems are weak. This allows big businesses to get these lands and use them for other ends, disrupting local people’s lives.

3 – Deforestation for Food May Lead to Food Insecurity in the Future

Today, 52% of all the land used for food production is moderately or severely impacted by soil erosion. In the long term, the lack of healthy, nutritious soil can lead to low yields and food insecurity.



4 – Soil Erosion is One of the Consequences of Deforestation

Deforestation weakens and degrades the soil. Forested soils are usually not only richer on organic matter, but also more resistant to erosion, bad weather, and extreme weather events. This happens mainly because roots help fix trees in the ground and the sun-blocking tree cover helps the soil to slowly dry out. As a result, deforestation will probably mean the soil will become increasingly fragile, leaving the area more vulnerable to natural disasters such as landslides and floods.




The Effects Of Deforestation In The Amazon Rainforest

Brazil and the Amazon forest are also important (for the wrong reasons) deforestation areas worldwide. The Amazon Rainforest is one of the world’s largest forest hotspots, with huge biodiversity reserves. Its ability to store carbon and produce oxygen makes it of the “lungs” of the planet.

Since the 1960s, the Amazon forest has been under threat, and nearly 760 000 km2 (around 20% of its original size) of forest area was lost. Before 1980-1990, large industrial projects such as dams, roads, or mines were the main causes of deforestation in the Amazon region, together with subsistence farming. However, for around thirty years, the causes of deforestation in the Amazon rainforest are changing. 




According to various reports on the subject (Greenpeace, FAO), the remaining causes of deforestation in the Amazon region is the soya production,  is responsible for about 70 to 80% of deforestation in the Amazon region. The development of intensive livestock production, combined with meat consumption increases in developed countries, is thus the main cause of deforestation in the Amazon forest.



I would like to end up this blog with

ONE TWO THREE,

LETS PLANT A TREE.


Please stop deforestation and go for afforestation.🌲🌳



THANK YOU FOR READING MY BLOG

SHAGUN

AMITY UNIVERSITY, JAIPUR



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