Environmental problems deforestation. Deforestation Kills Life: PSA for Animals and Nature. What happens after cutting

Forest filters water and regulates the water cycle in nature. It retains moisture in the soil longer than an unforested area, since evaporation from wooded soil and release of moisture from tree leaves is much slower. Thereby Forest makes it possible to more evenly fill streams and rivers with water, especially during the snowmelt period. The risk of flooding in wooded areas is much lower than in areas with few trees. Forest reduces the demolition and washing out of the soil by wind, water, scree and snow avalanches and thereby prevents landscape karstization. In addition, the groundwater level is protected from lowering due to the root system of trees. Forest is a carbon store, since it constantly binds carbon from carbon dioxide adsorbed in leaves and needles. One kilogram of dry wood contains about 500 grams of carbon. Through the absorption of carbon dioxide from the air and the sequestration of carbon in wood, the share of CO2, which is the cause of the greenhouse effect, is reduced in the atmosphere.

The process of deforestation is an urgent problem in many parts of the world, as it affects their ecological, climatic and socio-economic characteristics. Deforestation leads to a decrease in biodiversity, wood reserves for industrial use and quality of life, as well as an increase in the greenhouse effect due to a decrease in photosynthesis.

The consequences of deforestation are completely unknown and not verified by sufficient scientific data, which causes active controversy in the scientific community. The scale of deforestation can be observed in satellite images of the Earth, which can be accessed, for example, using the program
It is rather difficult to determine the actual rate of deforestation, since the organization involved in recording these data (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, FAO) mainly relies on official data from the relevant ministries of individual countries. According to the estimates of this organization, the total losses in the world for the first 5 years of the 21st century amounted to 7.3 million hectares of forest annually. The World Bank estimates that 80% of logging in Peru and Bolivia is illegal, and 42% in Colombia. The process of the disappearance of the Amazon forests in Brazil is also happening much faster than scientists thought.

Globally, deforestation rates were declining in the 1980s and 1990s, as they were from 2000 to 2005. Based on these trends, it is estimated that reforestation efforts over the next half century will result in a 10% increase in forest area. However, reducing the rate of deforestation does not solve the problems already created by this process.

The consequences of deforestation:

1) The habitat for the inhabitants of the forest (animals, fungi, lichens, grasses) is being destroyed. They may disappear completely.

2) The forest with its roots holds the top fertile soil layer. Without support, the soil can be blown away by the wind (you get a desert) or water (you get ravines).

3) The forest evaporates a lot of water from the surface of its leaves. If you remove the forest, then the air humidity in the area will decrease, and the soil moisture will increase (a swamp may form).

The thesis that after deforestation the amount of oxygen will decrease is incorrect from an ecological point of view (the forest, as a developed ecosystem, absorbs as much oxygen for animals and fungi as it produces for plants), but it can work in the Unified State Examination.

The impact of forests on the environment is extremely diverse. It manifests itself, in particular, in the fact that forests:
- are the main supplier of oxygen on the planet;
- directly affect the water regime both in the territories occupied by them and in the adjacent territories and regulate the water balance;
—- reduce the negative impact of droughts and dry winds, restrain the movement of moving sands;
- softening the climate, contribute to the increase in crop yields;
— absorb and/transform part of atmospheric chemical pollution;
— protect soils from water and wind erosion, mudflows, landslides, coastal destruction and other unfavorable geological processes;

Grade

The forest is a complex ecosystem that combines plants, animals, fungi, microorganisms and, the state of drinking water,.

Millennia ago, almost the entire Earth was covered with forests. They spread to North America, occupied a significant share of Western Europe. The vast territories of Africa, South America and Asia were dense forests. But with the growth in the number of people, their active development of land for economic needs, the process of deforestation and mass deforestation began.

What are the benefits of forests?

People use the forest for many purposes: they get food, medicines, raw materials for the paper industry.

Wood, needles and tree bark are raw materials for many branches of the chemical industry. About half of the extracted wood goes to fuel needs, and a third goes to construction.

A quarter of all medicines used are derived from rainforest plants. Through photosynthesis, forests give us oxygen to breathe while absorbing carbon dioxide.

Trees protect the air from poisonous gases, soot and other pollution, noise. Phytoncides produced by most coniferous plants destroy pathogens.

Forests are habitats for many animals - they are the real pantries of biological diversity. They are involved in creating a favorable microclimate for agricultural plants.

Forest areas protect the soil from erosion processes by preventing surface runoff of precipitation. The forest is like a sponge that first accumulates and then releases water to streams and rivers, regulates the flow of water from the mountains to the plains, and prevents floods.

The most full-flowing river in the world is the Amazon, and the forests included in its basin are considered the lungs of the Earth.

Damage from deforestation

Despite the fact that forests are a renewable resource, the rate of their deforestation is too high - they simply cannot keep up with us.

Millions of hectares of deciduous and coniferous forests are destroyed every year. Tropical forests, which are home to more than 50% of the species that exist on Earth, used to cover 14% of the planet, and now only 6%.

India's forested areas have shrunk from 22% to 10% in the last half century. The coniferous forests of the central regions of Russia, the forest massifs in the Far East and Siberia are destroyed, and swamps appear on the site of clearings. Valuable pine and cedar forests are cut down.

Deforestation is. The deforestation of the planet leads to sharp temperature changes, changes in the amount of precipitation and wind speeds.

Burning forests causes carbon monoxide pollution in the air, more carbon monoxide is emitted than is absorbed. Also, when forests are cleared, carbon is released into the air, which accumulates in the soil under the trees. This contributes about a quarter of the process of creating a greenhouse effect on Earth.

Many areas left without forest as a result of deforestation or fires become deserts, as the loss of trees leads to the fact that a thin fertile layer of soil is easily washed away by precipitation.

Desertification causes a huge number of ecological refugees - ethnic groups for whom the forest was the main or only source of existence. Many inhabitants of the forest territories disappear along with their home.

Plants of irreplaceable species used to obtain medicines, and many biological resources valuable to mankind are being destroyed. More than a million biological species living in tropical forests are under threat of extinction.

Soil erosion that develops after logging leads to floods, since nothing can stop the flow of water. Floods are caused by a violation of the level of groundwater, as the roots of trees that feed on them die.

For example, as a result of extensive deforestation at the foot of the Himalayas, Bangladesh began to suffer from large floods every four years.

Previously, floods occurred no more than twice every hundred years. So, for example, diamond mining in Yakutia became possible only after cutting down and flooding a significant amount of forest.

Why and how are forests cut down?

Forests are cut down for the sake of mining, obtaining timber, clearing the area for pastures, and obtaining agricultural land.

And as the cheapest raw material, it is used in almost all and other products. And that is killing the rainforests, and depriving a lot of animals of their homes.

Forests are divided into three groups:

1. Forest areas forbidden for deforestation, playing, which are reserves.
2. Forests of limited exploitation, located in densely populated areas, are strictly controlled for their timely restoration.
3. The so-called operational forests. They are cut down completely and then re-sown.

There are several types of felling in forestry:

Main felling- this is the harvesting of the so-called ripe forest for wood. They can be selective, gradual and continuous. Clear cuts destroy all trees except seedlings. With gradual cutting process is carried out in several stages. With a selective type, only individual trees are removed according to a certain principle, and in general the territory remains covered with forest.

Plant care cabin. This species includes cutting down plants that are not practical to leave. They destroy plants of inferior quality, while at the same time thinning and clearing the forest, improving its lighting and providing nutrients to the remaining more valuable trees. This allows you to increase the productivity of the forest, its water-regulating properties and aesthetic qualities. Wood from such cuttings is used as a technological raw material.

Complex. These are reshaping fellings, reforestation and reconstructive fellings. They are carried out in cases where the forest loses its useful properties in order to restore them, a negative impact on the environment with this type of cutting is excluded. Cutting favorably affects the clarification of the territory and eliminates root competition for more valuable tree species.

Sanitary. Such felling is carried out to improve the health of the forest, increase its biological stability. This type includes landscape felling, carried out in order to create forest park landscapes, and felling to create fire breaks.

The strongest intervention clear felling. Overcutting of trees has negative consequences when more trees are destroyed than grows in a year, which causes the depletion of forest resources. In turn, undercutting can cause forest aging and disease of old trees.

Without harm to the environment, cutting down can be carried out if the principle of continuous forest management based on the balance of cutting down and reforestation is observed. Selective logging is characterized by the least environmental damage.

It is preferable to cut down the forest in winter, when the snow cover protects the soil and young growth from damage.

How to repair this damage?

In order to stop the process of deforestation, it is necessary to develop norms for the reasonable use of forest resources. The following directions must be followed:

1. conservation of forest landscapes and its biological diversity;
2. conducting uniform forest management without depletion of forest resources;
3. training the population in the skills of caring for the forest;
4. strengthening at the state level of control over the conservation and use of forest resources;
5. creation of forest accounting and monitoring systems;
6. improvement of forest legislation,

Replanting trees often does not cover the damage caused by logging. In South America, South Africa and Southeast Asia, forest areas continue to shrink inexorably.

In order to reduce the damage from cutting down, it is necessary:

• Increase planting areas for new forests
• Expand existing and create new protected areas, forest reserves.
• Implement effective measures to prevent forest fires. To carry out measures, including preventive measures, to combat diseases and pests.

• Conduct selection of tree species that are resistant to environmental stress.
• Protect forests from the activities of enterprises engaged in the extraction of minerals.
• To carry out the fight against poachers. Use efficient and least harmful felling techniques.

• Minimize wood waste, develop ways to use it.
• Introduce methods of secondary processing of wood.
• Encourage eco-tourism.

What can anyone do to save the forest?

1. rational and economical use of paper products; buy recycled products, including paper. (It is marked with a recycled sign)
2. landscaping around your home
3. replace trees cut down for firewood with new seedlings
4. draw public attention to the problem of deforestation.

Man cannot exist outside of nature, he is part of it. And at the same time, it is difficult to imagine our civilization without the products that the forest provides.

In addition to the material component, there is also a spiritual relationship between the forest and man. Under the influence of the forest, the formation of culture, customs of many ethnic groups takes place, it also serves as a source of livelihood for them.

The forest is one of the cheapest sources of natural wealth, but every minute 20 hectares of forest areas are destroyed. And humanity should already now think about replenishing these natural resources, learn how to competently manage forest management and the miraculous ability of the forest to self-renew.

Trees and other vegetation are the key to maintaining the climate on Earth. In recent years, the issue of preserving forests on the planet has become particularly acute. The number of green spaces and their condition in cities and other settlements are monitored by the competent authorities.

Sanitary felling of trees on the site is possible only after agreement with the utility companies.

Sanitary felling

Trees, like other living organisms, are prone to disease, they age, become emergency. Spontaneous collapse of such a tree can lead to accidents and injuries, as well as the collapse of power lines, damage to cars and other property.

Regular felling of trees within the boundaries of settlements is necessary for:

• timely removal of diseased, old or damaged plants that can harm people or property;
• rejuvenation of the garden and arrangement of territories, as new plants will be planted in place of old trees;
• construction work in the construction of new buildings, laying roads or communications.

All these activities must be carried out in accordance with applicable law after approvals.

For industrial purposes, wood is obtained by deforestation. This process should be controlled by the state. Recently, cases of illegal deforestation have become more frequent, in which case no one cares about preserving nature and reducing damage to the forest ecosystem.

As a result, irreparable damage is caused to nature:

• after the destruction of the forest ecosystem, many species of animals and plants disappear;
• a decrease in the varieties of representatives of the flora affects the quality of life of the population of the planet;
• an increase in carbon dioxide in the planet's atmosphere leads to a greenhouse effect, resulting in global climate change;
• there is a constant washing out of the soil, the destruction of the upper fertile layer, which leads to the formation of deserts;
• high humidity on the soil provokes waterlogging of areas where trees were cut down;
• the destruction of green spaces from the slopes of the mountains leads to the rapid melting of glaciers.

The negative consequences can be mitigated by planting new plants, as well as reducing the consumption of wood and paper products. Recycling paper can also partially solve the problem of cutting down trees.

Deforestation can lead to sad consequences, see the video:

The nature and solution of the problem of deforestation
Forest expanses only seem limitless. In the process of human activity, most of the planet's greenery is destroyed, cutting down becomes widespread and widespread. The depletion of resources leads to the decline of the forest fund even in the taiga zone. Together with the forest fund, the flora and fauna are destroyed, the air becomes dirtier.

The main reason for deforestation is to use it as building material. Arrays are also cut down to make room for buildings, farms or agriculture.
With the advent of technological progress, the work of destroying the forest was automated, the productivity of felling increased many times over, and the volume of logging also increased.
Another motive for such actions is the creation of pasture for livestock. Grazing one cow requires about a hectare of space, for which hundreds of trees are cut down.

Consequences

Forests are good not only for the aesthetic component. This is a whole ecosystem, a home for many plants and animals, insects, birds. With the destruction of this array, the balance in the entire biosystem is disturbed.

Uncontrolled destruction of forest land leads to the following consequences:
the disappearance of certain species of fauna and flora;
species diversity is decreasing;
the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere increases;
soil erosion appears with the formation of deserts;
areas with high groundwater levels become swampy.

At the same time, more than 50% of the forest area is occupied by tropical forests. And it is their felling that is most dangerous for the ecological situation, since they contain about 85% of all known fauna and flora.
Cutting statistics

Deforestation is a worldwide problem. It is relevant not only in the CIS countries, but throughout Europe and America. According to statistics, 200 thousand square kilometers of plantings are cut down annually. This entails the extinction of hundreds of plant species and thousands of animals.

In Russia, 4 thousand hectares are cut down annually, in Canada - 2.5 thousand hectares, the least - in Indonesia, where 1.5 thousand hectares are destroyed annually. The problem is least expressed in China, Malaysia, Argentina. According to average data, approximately twenty hectares are destroyed per minute in the world, especially in the tropics.

In Russia, coniferous species are destroyed especially a lot. A large number of wetlands have formed in the Urals and Siberia. This phenomenon is difficult to control, since most logging is carried out illegally.

Ways to solve the problem

One way to solve the problem is to restore the used volume of trees, at least partially. Such an approach will not help to fully compensate for the losses. It is necessary to take comprehensive measures.

They include:
forest management planning;
strengthening the protection and control of resources;
improvement of environmental legislation;
development of a system for recording and monitoring the background of plantations.

In addition, it is necessary to increase the area of ​​new plantings, create territories with protected flora and a strict regime for the use of resources. It is necessary to prevent massive forest fires and popularize the recycling of wood.

On our planet. They are a natural and complex ecosystem that supports a huge range of life forms. Forests are a natural wonder and are unfortunately taken for granted by many.

The meaning of forests

Forests and biodiversity are extremely important. The richer the biodiversity, the more opportunities humanity has for medical discoveries, economic development, and adaptive responses to environmental challenges such as climate change.

The following are some examples of the meaning of forests:

Habitat and biodiversity

Forests serve as a home () for millions of animals and plants that are part of. All these representatives of flora and fauna are called biodiversity, and the interaction with each other and with their physical environment is called. Healthy ecosystems are better able to withstand and recover from various natural disasters such as floods and fires.

Economic benefits

Forests are of great economic importance to us. For example, plantation forests provide people with timber that is exported and used in all parts of the world. They also provide tourism income to local residents.

climate control

Climate control and purification of the atmosphere are key to human existence. Trees and soils help regulate atmospheric temperatures in a process called evapotranspiration and stabilize the climate. In addition, trees enrich the atmosphere by absorbing harmful gases (such as CO2 and other greenhouse gases) and producing oxygen through photosynthesis.

deforestation

Deforestation is a growing global problem with far-reaching environmental and economic consequences. However, some of the consequences of humanity will be able to fully experience when it is too late to prevent them. But what is deforestation and why is it such a big problem?

Causes

Deforestation refers to the loss or destruction of natural habitats, primarily due to human activities such as: uncontrolled cutting of trees; burning forests for agricultural use (including growing agricultural crops and grazing); ; construction of dams; increase in the area of ​​cities, etc.

However, not all deforestation is intentional. It can be caused by natural processes (including forest fires, volcanic eruptions, floods, landslides, etc.) and human interests. For example, fires burn large areas each year, and although fire is a natural part of the forest's life cycle, grazing after a fire can prevent young trees from growing.

Rate of deforestation

Forests, as before, cover more than 26% of the land of our planet. However, every year, about 13 million hectares of forest are converted into agricultural land or cleared for other uses.

Of this figure, about 6 million hectares are "virgin" forests, which are defined as forests where there are no clearly visible signs of human activity and where ecological processes are not severely disturbed.

Reforestation programs as well as the natural expansion of forests have slowed down the rate of deforestation. Despite this, about 7.3 million hectares of forest resources are lost every year.

The forest resources of Asia and South America are particularly vulnerable and face many threats. At the current rate of deforestation, they could be destroyed as functioning in less than a century.

The coastal rainforests of West Africa have shrunk by almost 90%, and deforestation in South Asia has been almost as severe. Two-thirds of the lowland tropical forests in Central America have been converted to grassland since 1950, and 40% of all tropical forests have been completely lost. Madagascar has lost 90% of its forest resources, and Brazil has faced the disappearance of more than 90% of the Atlantic forest. Several countries have declared deforestation an emergency.

Consequences of deforestation

The problem of deforestation leads to the following environmental and economic consequences:

• Loss of biological diversity. Scientists estimate that about 80% of the Earth's biodiversity, including those species that have not yet been discovered,. Deforestation in these regions destroys organisms, destroys ecosystems and leads to the potential extinction of many species, including essential species used to make medicines.
• Climate change. Deforestation also contributes, and tropical forests contain about 20% of all greenhouse gases that can be released into the atmosphere and lead to environmental and economic consequences worldwide. Although some people and organizations may benefit financially from deforestation, these short-term benefits cannot offset the negative and long-term economic losses.
• economic losses. At the 2008 Conference on Biological Diversity in Bonn, Germany, scientists, economists and other experts concluded that deforestation and damage to other ecological systems could halve people's living standards and reduce global gross domestic product (GDP) by about 7%. Forest products and related activities contribute about US$600 billion of global GDP annually.
• Water cycle. Trees are important to . They absorb precipitation and produce water vapor that is released into the atmosphere. Trees also reduce water pollution.
• Soil erosion. Tree roots fix the soil, and without them, weathering or washing out of the fertile layer of the earth can occur, which impairs plant growth. Scientists estimate that a third of the forest resources have been converted to arable land since 1960.
• The quality of life. Soil erosion can also cause silt to seep into lakes, streams, and others. This can lead to contamination of fresh water in a certain area and contribute to the deterioration of the health of local residents.

Fight against deforestation

forest plantations

The opposite of deforestation is the concept of reforestation. However, it should be understood that it is not enough to solve all serious problems by planting new trees. Reforestation implies a set of actions that are aimed at:

• Restoration of ecosystem benefits provided by forests, including carbon storage, water cycle and ;
• Reducing the accumulation of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere;
• Restoration of wildlife habitats.

However, reforestation will not be able to completely eliminate all damage. For example, forests cannot absorb all the carbon dioxide that humans release into the atmosphere by burning fossil fuels. Mankind still needs to avoid the accumulation of harmful substances in the atmosphere. Reforestation will also not help the extinction of species through deforestation. Unfortunately, humanity has already reduced the number of many species of flora and fauna to such an extent that they will no longer be able to recover even with significant efforts.

Reforestation is not the only way to combat deforestation. There is also deforestation retardation, which involves avoiding animal foods as much as possible and shifting to a plant-based diet. This could significantly reduce the need to clear forest land for later use in agriculture.

One of the ways to meet the global demand for wood is the creation of forest plantations (afforestation). They are able to reduce the deforestation of natural forests by 5-10 times and provide the necessary needs of mankind, with less environmental consequences.