The Forest And People
What's Happening
Back ground information
The forest covers about one third of the land on earth. They provide humans with natural resources, and they contain and protect many forms of wildlife.(1)
The Situation
In 2005 about sixty thousand square kilometers were cut down globally(2). In one hundred years all of the rainforest could be completely gone at the current rate of deforestation. The main effect of deforestation is the millions of plants and animals that depend on the forest to survive. Also, without the sun blocking trees the soil can dry up killing plants and making the land more like a desert.(3)
What can we do together
By recycling one ton of paper we can save seventeen trees(4). The fastest way to stop it would be to stop cutting down trees completely, but with so many products made of tree products a more reasonable solution would be to partially cut and balance that with new planting to make shure that the forest stays in tact.
http://www.greenfacts.org/en/forests/index.htm(1)
http://textilewastediversion.com/how-many-trees-are-cut-down-each-year/(2)
http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/deforestation-overview/(3)
http://www.usi.edu/recycle/paper-recycling-facts(4)
Picture two: http://www.economist.com/node/17062737
Picture three: http://dietplan101.com/before-and-after/deforestation-before-and-after/
Picture four: http://www.nadeson.net/Our%20People.htm