The Deforestation Issue and Future Directions

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Deforestation: Who, Where, How
Biological Concepts
Future Directions
Conclusion
References

Introduction

The topic that will be discussed in this presentation is deforestation, which is defined as the cutting down of forest areas worldwide to free lands for other uses, such as urbanization, mining activities, and agriculture. The problem has been exacerbated due to the increase in human activity. For example, 2000 years ago, 80% of Western Europe was forested, while today, only 34% of the land is filled with forests (National Geographic, 2022). Deforestation increases the speed of climate change, reduces air and water quality, as well as leads to the endangerment of species. More efforts are necessary to curb the cutting of forests and reduce their adverse influence on life on the planet.

Deforestation: Who, Where, How

In terms of location, deforestation is the most prevalent in tropical forests, with 95% of the global loss of trees occurring there (Derouin, 2022). Among specific countries, Brazil and Indonesia have the highest rates of deforestation worldwide. In terms of the process, deforestation takes place as vast forest areas are removed to be used for livestock or farming, construction, manufacturing, or mining (Derouin, 2022). In terms of the parties affected, farmers benefit from deforestation as they can use new free lands to plant crops and complete other agricultural work. Besides, commercial workers benefit because they are given jobs, while populations in Africa, Asia, and South America benefit from selling their forests, which helps their economic stability.

Biological Concepts

The ecosystem context is the most relevant to deforestation because the process influences wildlife systematically. At the level of ecosystems, deforestation leads to the reduction of water and air quality. While water quality reduces due to leeching, air quality reduces due to the increased concentration of greenhouse emissions when forests are eliminated. Deforestation is applicable to such concepts as sensitivity or response to the environment, homeostasis, and adaptation. Sensitivity or response to the environment refers to the reaction of living beings to changes occurring due to deforestation, while homeostasis is the ability of an organism to function despite changes. Finally, adaptation refers to the capability to adapt to environmental changes.

In terms of the relationship between deforestation and response to the environment, deforestation disrupts the usual surroundings. Besides, forests are crucial for helping living beings maintain homeostasis, while in terms of adaptation, when forests change the environment, living beings are expected to adapt to the change. Notably, when deforestation takes place, homeostasis gets disrupted because there is no stability in climate, water, temperature, numbers of plant and animal populations, and nutrient cycles (Nguyen, 2019). Even though humans and animals are expected to adapt to the changes that appear due to deforestation, it is not always possible because of the significant ecosystem changes that are nearly impossible to reverse.

Future Directions

To address the issue of deforestation, it is expected to increase the control over deforestation strategies and make tree-cutting regulated. More efforts aimed at education are necessary to save forests from being cut down (Butler, 2020). Public education to teach people about the environment will improve the overall ecological awareness of the population. In terms of solutions, it is necessary to implement government policies that will enforce strict rules and laws controlling deforestation efforts. Besides, to mitigate adverse effects, reforestation is recommended.

Conclusion

The concluding part of the topic is divided into the ethical perspective, the positive-negative balance, and personal impact. Overall, the public is aware that deforestation leads to environmental devastation, and community efforts are made to preserve forests. However, there is the other side that states that forest cutting is necessary for economic stability and wellness, especially among lower-income economies. Within the positive-negative balance, the negative side prevails because the forest is a limited resource, and its elimination leads to wildlife extinction and drought development due to the increase of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. On a personal level, people are expected to raise awareness of deforestation in the local community as a problem that needs solving.