Deforestation - Hs
Deforestation: A Global Consequence
Deforestation has been a major problem that has been effecting the world for an extended period of time. Deforestation is the when forests are burned, cleared, or cut down for purposes of the people that are living around the land. Deforestation mostly happens in lesser developed countries so that they can get money to help improve their status of living. Since 1950, a fifth of the world's forest cover has been removed and the world itself is undergoing the most rapid and complete deforestation it has ever experienced (Deforestation: Causes, Implications, and Solution,1). According to reports from the World Resource Institute (WRI), about 80% of the total deforestation is tropical rainforests (Deforestation: Causes, Implications, and Solution, 1). To examine the total effect of deforestation, lets examine one specific area that has been undergoing mass deforestation.
The total area of the Amazon Rainforest in Brazil is 5.5 square kilometers (Amazon Life, 1). It is the most diverse biome and contains a large percent of the Earth's plants, animals, and endangered species. Most of the trees in the forest are hardwood or palm trees (Amazon River, 324). Out of the 22,767 plants species that are known in the world 16,619 (about one-third) live in the Amazon (Amazon River, 324). There are 2000 different species of fish that inhabit the Amazon River that is 4087 miles long (Amazon River, 324). One can see how important just one tropical rainforest is to our planet. Now realize that the Amazon Rainforest is one of the top rainforests that suffers from deforestation. Imagine all the plants, animals and other endangered species that will be losing their homes.
There are many reasons why precious rainforests are cleared. One of the reasons is wood extraction. Wood is one of the forest products that is most valuable to human economies for many reasons because wood is durable, light weight...
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