7.7.The+consequences+of+deforestation

= 7. What are the consequences of deforestation? (case study of an area suffering from deforestation) =

You know what I was saying about biodiversity? Have a look at this .

What are the Effects of Deforestation?

 * **Erosion of Soil**: When forest areas are cleared, it results in exposing the soil to the sun, making it very dry and eventually, infertile, due to volatile nutrients such as nitrogen being lost. In addition, when there is rainfall, it washes away the rest of the nutrients, which flow with the rainwater into waterways. Because of this, merely replanting trees may not help in solving the problems caused by deforestation, for by the time the trees mature, the soil will be totally devoid of essential nutrients. Ultimately, cultivation in this land will also become impossible, resulting in the land becoming useless. Large tracts of land will be rendered permanently impoverished due to soil erosion.
 * **Disruption of the Water Cycle:** Trees contribute in a large way in maintaining the water cycle. They draw up water via their roots, which is then released into the atmosphere. A large part of the water that circulates in the ecosystem of rainforests, for instance, remains inside the plants. When these trees are cut down it results in the climate getting drier in that area.
 * **Loss of Biodiversity:** The unique biodiversity of various geographical areas is being lost on a scale that is quite unprecedented. Even though tropical rainforests make up just 6 percent of the surface area of the Earth, about 80-90 percent of the entire species of the world exist here. Due to massive deforestation, about 50 to 100 species of animals are being lost each day. The outcome of which is the extinction of animals and plants on a massive scale.
 * **Flooding and Drought:** One of the vital functions of forests is to absorb and store great amounts of water quickly when there are heavy rains. When forests are cut down, this regulation of the flow of water is disrupted, which leads to alternating periods of flood and then drought in the affected area.
 * **Climate Change**: It is well known that global warming is being caused largely due to emissions of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. However, what is not known quite as well appreciated is that deforestation has a direction association with carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere. Trees act as a major storage deposit for carbon, since they absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, which is then used to produce carbohydrates, fats, and proteins that make up trees. When deforestation occurs, many of the trees are burnt or they are allowed to rot, which results in releasing the carbon that is stored in them as carbon dioxide. This, in turn, leads to greater concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. So deforestation has a double whammy - releases stored CO2 and then is unable to absorb any more.
 * **Disease**: A recent pieces of research has found that "A 4 percent change in forest cover was associated with a 48 percent increase in malaria incidence in these 54 health districts of the Amazon," It would seem that "The deforested landscape, with more open spaces and partially sunlit pools of water, appears to provide ideal habitat for this mosquito," Olson says of Anopheles darlingi, the primary carrier of malaria in the Amazon. In deforested areas Anopheles darlingi displaces other less-malaria prone mosquitoes that favour forest landscapes
 * I know I put this on the previous page as well - but it fits in here too!

The Causes and Impacts of Deforestation on the Amazon
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= NEWS = @http://lindym.wordpress.com/2010/10/26/amazon-suffers-worst-drought-in-decades/