Harmful Effects of Deforestation

Human beings always have been and probably alwaysconitnued degradation of our forest heightens the
will be to some extent dependent on forests. Treesthreat of global warming because the trees and other
were their habitat, their environment, their source ofplants that takes up carbon dioxide from the
food and their protection from enemies. Forests areatmosphere to be used for photosynthesis are gone.
very important to man, and other organisms, and oneThe burning of wood or its decay contributes to the
of the biggest problems the world is facing today isrelease of more carbon which combines with oxygen
the threat of totally losing the forests due to massivein the atmosphere thus increasing further the levels of
deforestation and suffering the harmful effects ofcarbon dioxide that causes greenhouse effect.
deforestation.Silting of Rivers and Dams - Deforestation results in
Deforestation can be defined as the large scalethe silting of rivers sediments deposit which shortens
removal of forests. Deforestation occurs whenits life span and clogs irrigation system. As a result of
forests are converted to non-forest areas fordeforestation, the reservoir behind many dams are
urbanization, agriculture, and other reasons withoutfilled with sediments more rapidly than expected.
sufficient reforestation. It is the permanent destructionFlooding - One major importance of forest is that they
of forests and woodlands.absorb water quickly in great amount during heavy
At present, forests are considered among the mostrains. But due to massive deforestation there are no
endangered on the planet. Everyday at least 80,000trees to absorb the water thus resulting to the loss of
acres of forest vanish from Earth. The Food andmany lives.
Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United NationsLandslides - The roots of the trees bind soil to it and to
show that the rates of deforestation has not abatedthe bedroock underlying it. That is how trees prevent
and has actually increased by 8.5% from 2000-2005soil from getting eroded by natural agents like wind or
compared during the 1990s. FAO has approximatedwater. When trees are uprooted, there will be nothing
that about 10.4 million hectares of tropical forest haveto hold the soil together thus increasing the risk for
been permanently destroyed from 2000-2005landslides which can cause seriously threaten the
compared to 10.14 million hectares in the period ofsafety of the people and damage their properties.
1990-2000.Denuded Upland - After several harvests of the forest
The process of deforestation is often a complexthe cleared land is no longer suitable for planting trees.
pattern of progressive fragmentation of the forests.It has become a desert. The transformation of a
Mistakes of this sort could lead to forest destruction.forest to a semi-desert condition is called
Along with this destruction is the extinction of manydesertification.
species, heavy soil erosion, greenhouse effect, silting ofDegraded Watershed - When forest mountains are
rivers and dams, flooding, landslides, denuded upland,denuded, watersheds are degraded and this leads to
degraded watershed, and even destruction of coralsthe loss of sustained water supplies for lowland
along the coast.communities. This is because trees affect the
Extinction of Thousands of Species - Destruction ofhydrological cycle. They can change the amount of
the forests leads to a tragic loss of biodiversity. Millionswater in the soil, groundwater, and in the atmosphere.
of plants and animal species are in danger ofDestruction of Corals along the Coast - Coral areas
disappearing as a result of deforestation. Tropicalare degraded and coral reefs are affected by siltation.
forests are much more biologically diverse than otherAs a result of deforestation there is an increase of
forest and a very serious effect of deforestation inflooding during the rainy seasons and decreased
tropical countries is the loss of biodiversity.stream flow in dry seasons.
Heavy Soil Erosion - One function of the forest is thatThe forest provides us with many products and
its roots hold the soil in place. Without trees soil erosionimportant services. It stops soil erosion, refreshes the
and landslides easily happen. When heavy rains andair, and protect us from typhoons and other calamities.
typhoons come, soil is easily carried to lower areasBut if rampant deforestation is not controlled it will
especially to communities at the foot of the mountains.result to several problems. In one way or another, the
Greenhouse Effect - Deforestation increases thedenuded forests will back fire and people will certainly
amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Thelose to the harmful effects of deforestation.