The Effects of Deforestation on Air Pollution

According to National Geographic, at the current rate of deforestation, the world's rain forests will be completely destroyed within a hundred years. The effects of disrupting the delicate ecological balance and energy producers of a community on air pollution and climate change have been observed as this pattern of destruction has continued over recent years.

The Problem

• Deforestation is the process of cutting down the world's forests for economic or agricultural needs. Many farmers will clear acres of forests using a process known as "slash and burn" agriculture, which involves cutting down and burning large areas of trees. Industrial logging companies provide the world with wood and paper products by cutting down massive forests every year.

Greenhouse Gases

• The primary producers of this planet are the forests and plant life. By converting our waste products, such as carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, into nutrients and life giving oxygen, forests exists as a critical counterpoint in the life of all animals across the globe. Deforestation results in increasing levels of greenhouse gas pollution in the atmosphere, hence accelerating rates of global warming.

Climate Change

• The impact deforestation plays on climate change reveals a great deal about the importance of maintaining balance, or equilibrium, in an ecosystem. Trees normally create a protective canopy for the forest floor, preventing large amounts of light rays from reaching the soil and drying out the land. The cycle of water through an ecosystem is also critically dependent on the activity of trees. In order to absorb carbon dioxide for photosynthesis, microscopic openings in the leaves, known as stomata, periodically open themselves up to the atmosphere. While collecting this life-giving gas, the trees also release small amounts of water vapor into the surrounding air. This movement of water up the trees from the roots to the tips of leaves is a process known as transpiration. By returning water to the atmosphere, trees serve a vital role in maintaining the humidity of the forest ecosystem; without this occurring, many forests would become dry deserts.

The Solution

• The financial incentives driving irresponsible methods of deforestation have made resource management and reform efforts difficult. In order to pull out of this downward spiral, it is essential to design a sustainable solution that will keep these forest ecosystems intact. Such an approach to foresting would require companies to match the rates of tree planting to cutting. Currently, the numbers of new tree plantations are rising but the ratio remains far from sustainable, given the significantly higher rates of deforestation.