“It's when forests stop breathing that man bids farewell,” says Anthony T. Hincks. Though society requires land development, and products such as paper, bath towel, furniture, and many more from forests, what we do to obtain these resources may lead to our downfall.

But why does this matter we are just cutting down trees for the better livelihood of ourselves right?

As of right now, forests cover approximately 31% of our planet, and are being cut down at an alarming rate of 46-58 thousand square miles yearly; equal to 48 football fields of trees disappearing every minute.[i] Before we converse about a solution we must become knowledgeable about the consequences deforestation can bear.               

Through deforestation, many species of animals and plants are put to risk, due to the loss of their habitat. 70% of all biota occupy forests and many may suffer from the loss of their habitat.[ii] Many species have developed characteristics to adapt to the environment that they live in and stripping away the habitats suddenly can suddenly decimate the population of species in the ecosystem. Currently, most of the logging is occurring in the Amazon rainforest which is home to thousands of species.[iii] Not only do we lose the biome concentrated around the forest we damage the land that the forest once occupied.

As forests are cleared away, the topsoil erodes and washes away causing soil erosion. When forests are cut down for agriculture, this could be a problem, as the intention of cutting down forests to make arable land for crops is compromised. Around a third of the world’s arable land has been lost from the process of deforestation.[iv] Fortunately, this only occurs when clear-cutting is used when logging, which is the least sustainable method.

Although the loss of habitats and soil erosion may seem to be the main consequences of deforestation, something more dreadful is occurring in the background. Global warming can mean the doom to our world as the average temperature of the earth increases due to excessive amounts of greenhouse gasses that are inputted into the atmosphere from human activities.

It is estimated that 25% of CO2 emissions are sourced from logging efforts, from the creation of roads and transportation of timber from the source.[v] Trees also intake the CO2 and output O2 through photosynthesis. By cutting down forests not only do we lose the most efficient way of reducing the amount of CO2 in our atmosphere, but we also add CO2 back up to the atmosphere. If the practices involved with deforestation continue without a change the amount of CO2 in the air will keep on increasing leading to global warming.

So, what are the solutions for dealing with deforestation?

The main solution is sustainable forestry where the needs of the environment, wildlife, and forest communities, and economic values are put into consideration. Forest provide society with beneficial activities such as tourism, and hunting, but once a forest is a clear cut, it destroys the activities within the region.[vi] As of now, the main timber harvesting methods are clearcutting, selective, and shelterwood.

Do you like cheap and an efficient way of harvesting wood?

Then clear cutting is for you. Clearcutting is where every marketable tree is cut down from a selected forest, as companies profit with less effort.[vii] By far clearcutting is the worst method of timber harvesting, as parts of forests are cut down and left to grow back, ruining many opportunities that could be gained, but all these negatives can be negated with other methods of logging.

Selective logging is the practice of selecting one or two species of trees to cut down in an area. It is often seen as a sustainable alternative to clear-cutting, but on average when one tree is cut down, up to 30 more trees can be damaged by vines that can connect to other trees bringing them down with it.[viii] Selective logging is seen as an alternative to clear-cutting but the last method of logging is without a doubt the most sustainable.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              Shelterwood logging is the most sustainable way of logging as it is the removal of most of the undesirable trees being cut opening the canopy a letting more light to hit the forest floor allowing the desired seeds/seedling to grow.[ix] By doing this the mature trees that are cut down are “replaced” by the seedings, and leads to an even-aged forest. Although shelterwood is slow and tedious, in the end, you establish a sustainable way of logging.

The government should take the initiative to educate and reform those in the logging industry by introducing the idea of sustainable logging and the negatives that come with deforestation. Literally, as forests are cut down they lose the ability to “breath” and intake the CO2 in our atmosphere which is a major player in global warming.

[i] L. B. (2017, April 18). Deforestation and Climate Change.
[ii] Effects of Deforestation | The Pachamama Alliance. (n.d.). 
[iii] Ibid, NA.
[iv] Bennet, Deforestation and Climate Change, 2017.
[v] Ibid, 2017.
[vi] Administrator. (n.d.). Earthroots Open Source Content Management. 
[vii] Ibid, NA
[viii] Shwartz, M., & Shwartz, M. (2005, October 21). Selective logging causes widespread destruction, study finds. 
[ix] Turner Logging. (2017, July 10). Timber Harvest: Shelterwood Technique | Turner Logging.

Works Cited

Administrator. (n.d.). Earthroots Open Source Content Management. 

Effects of Deforestation | The Pachamama Alliance. (n.d.). 

L. B. (2017, April 18). Deforestation and Climate Change.

Shwartz, M., & Shwartz, M. (2005, October 21). Selective logging causes widespread destruction, study finds.

 Select-102605.html

Turner Logging. (2017, July 10). Timber Harvest: Shelterwood Technique | Turner Logging.