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We rely upon trees for our survival on earth, but due to deforestation, we are placing ourselves under threat.
Why do we cut down so many trees?
Trees are used for in construction, manufacturing of furniture and for making paper - and many trees are cut down. However, in many places, each time a tree is cut down a new one is planted.
Trees are also cut down in large numbers to change the landscape for new purposes - most often for farming or construction.
Also, trees can die or fail to reproduce when their habitat is threatened by air pollution, water pollution, waste and climate change.
Why are trees so important anyway?
Trees are vital in so many ways, but in particular:
- They are the home to many different types of animals - and when trees are cut down in large numbers, animals lose their natural habitat and die.
- They absorb carbon dioxide in large quantities - but when there are fewer trees, less carbon dioxide can be absorbed and therefore we see a build up of greenhouse gases which cause climate change.
Simply put: plant more trees. And quickly!
Many different charities, organisations and governments have promised to plant more trees to replace the huge numbers that have been cut down, however, not even their efforts come close to solving the problem.
We can learn to live with (and in) trees. Instead of cutting down trees because they get in our way, we can change our attitude and develop new technology which allows us to build, farm and live without the need to cut down trees.
By tackling climate change, we can reduce the negative impacts on trees - particularly, drought and forest fires which can kill millions and millions of trees in just a few weeks.
