A Balding Planet

Since childhood, it has been ingrained in the minds of many the importance of trees in the environment. When asked, we would answer that trees provide us with oxygen, shade, fresh air, and countless of products we use in our daily lives. However, as we grow older, we lose sight of the mutualism that humanity has with forests. Instead, with every generation, there is an increased ignorance of conservation and preservation of forests.

Based on definition, deforestation is the clearing or cutting down of forests in order for the land to be use for other purposes. The main cause as to why deforestation is being conducted is actually to make arable land for agriculture caused by rapid overpopulation that results to heightened demand for food supply. Forests cover 31% percent of our planet but according to National Geographic, there may no longer be any forests left within a hundred years. In particular, tropical rainforests such as those found in the Amazon account for much of our planet’s biodiversity and provides homes to countless of species. Additionally, deforestation of tropical rainforests is the second leading cause of climate change. 

In order to better understand what deforestation means and what it does to our environment, I will tackle as to why we conduct deforestation, the problems that it costs and what methods can be taken to mitigate the negative effects of deforestation.

Humans have been cutting down rainforests to accommodate their needs and wants such as the production of paper, wood, or fuel and to make space for agriculture, ranching or urbanization. With the rapidly increasing population, a world banking heavily on capitalist industries and virtually no mandatory regulation of the consumption of products and production of waste, deforestation has become the second leading cause for climate change, animals being classified as endangered or extinct due to loss of habitat and erosion that can cause flooding or landslides.

Here in the Philippines, deforestation has a steady pace. According to Mongabay.com that presents Philippine Forestry Statistics, the average annual deforestation rate from 1990 to 2000 is 2.48% or 262,500 hectares of forest per year. The Philippines has already lost 32.3% of its forest cover that equivalent to 3,412,000 hectares per year. Additional contributors of the problem are the illegal logging and mining industries that are prevalent in the country. As the home to numerous endemic species of flora and fauna, the deforestation has threatened numerous species into extinction because of loss of habitat.

These statistics prove that there is a problem and scientists have been trying to convince governments and corporations to adopt more sustainable ways of production. That is a long process but that doesn’t mean that we can’t contribute to change in our own simple way. The basic mantra of every environmentalist is the 3Rs; Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. Bringing your own metal or bamboo straw, reusable bag and even your own drinking cup is a huge contribution already. Changing the current state of our environmental problems is a team effort and I’ll be talking more about that on my next article but for now, I end with this.

Balding in humans is a bold statement but the balding of our planet is a harsh reality that foretells of a tragic, unimaginable future if not remedied soon. Admittedly, there have been significant efforts, those of which I will feature in my next article, but these efforts currently are not enough. In debate sense, there are those that believe that the damage done is irreversible and then there are the advocates that push through with efforts to change that perspective and to change the grim future ahead. 

References:

https://www.conserve-energy-future.com/various-deforestation-facts.php

http://www.theworldcounts.com/stories/deforestation-facts-and-statistics

https://www.worldwildlife.org/threats/deforestation

https://rainforests.mongabay.com/20philippines.htm

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deforestation_in_the_Philippines