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Lexy Johnson

Miles

Pre- AP English 10

14 January 2018

Deforestation Bibliography

“Deforestation” National Geographic, 25 July 2017,

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/deforestation/
Accessed on 14 January 2018.

Deforestation is the removal of trees from an area of land, generally in order to clear

space for lodging, agriculture, or urbanization. Deforestation recently has been exponentially

growing, at a rate that will soon lead to devastation for many life forms. Animals that occupy

these forests, as well as plant species, are having their habitats destroyed resulting in extreme

disruptions of ecosystems and food chains. The article supplies the statistic that 80% of Earth’s

land-occupying animals and plants live in forests. Therefore, if we continue to demolish their

homes, animals and various species’ populations will subsequently begin to diminish.

National Geographic draws attention to the negative outcomes and possible solutions to

this expanding epidemic. Ultimately, some of the deforestation causes are out of human control

such as wild fires or natural disasters. After disasters like those, an ecosystem can typically

rebuild itself and adapt to the new surroundings. However, when human forces act and clear the

land for a possible new road, or bank, or farm, or cattle, chances decrease tremendously that

there will ever be a functioning ecosystem again. One may be thinking there is irony in this

situation since “cattle and agriculture count as plants and animals”. Despite the truth in that

statement, National Geographic weighs the losses as much heavier than the gains. The human

greed for more food to achieve more money is valued with less importance than healthy animals
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and plants and fertile soil. Considering the trees allow us to breath, conservation of forests

should always outweigh destruction for economic gains.

NASA. “Tropical Deforestation.” NASA Earth Observatory

https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Features/Deforestation/deforestation_update3.php .
Accessed 14 January 2018.

Within NASA’s article, the main focal point is centered around tropical rainforest

deforestation. There are variations of deforestation such as woodland forests with pine or oak

trees, while more exotic forms such as rainforests are also an issue. NASA views the main cause

of deforestation to be poverty. Poverty creates a desire for new development in order to increase

functionality in areas like trade, urbanization, and transportation. With that in mind, NASA

provides statistics demonstrating that Brazil inflicted the most deforestation over a time span of

fifteen years. The amount of land Brazil, alone, had cleared is equivalent to the area size of

California, according to the article. This mass demolition, of course, comes with major

consequences. Likewise to National Geographic, NASA speaks of the impacts on ecosystems,

and life. Particularly in tropical rainforests, there is an extreme abundance of diverse, rare

species, and indigenous people also occupy these places. The destruction of their homes and

habitats leaves them hopeless with nothing left to gain. Oftentimes, species of plants and animals

become extinct due to human- inflicted causes, like deforestation.

NASA has suggested practices and ideas that can aid in sustaining the tropical rainforests

for years and years to come. Upon seeing the effects of deforestation, the points they bring to the

table become much more valid, especially from such an educated organization. The article

concludes that changes need to be made on a local community scale as well as an international

scale. This is a harmful process that is occurring world- wide, therefore efforts need to be made

world- wide. One suggestion brought to attention, was more government and park officials
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should impose stricter policies and regulations to ensure the conservation of the forests.

Companies and organizations should also make an effort to use more eco- friendly products.

Mooney, Chris. “Destruction of the Amazon is speeding up- just when the planet can least afford
it.” Washington Post, 2 December 2016. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-
environment/wp/2016/12/02/amazon-deforestation-is-increasing-at-a-time-when-the-
planet-can-least-afford-it/?utm_term=.e13940dfa0cb Accessed on 16 January 2018.

Chris Mooney’s article expresses his stand on the idea of deforestation. Mooney focusses

on the atmospheric and global effects deforestation generates. According to Mooney, 2012 hit an

all- time low for percentage of deforestation. This decrease ignited a spark of hope for restoration

time for the previously damaged forests. However, in the following years to come deforestation

percentages continued to rise, so 2012 was just a false hope in Mooney’s eyes. Along with the

increase of deforestation, came an increase in global warming. Mooney draws a direct link

between the two considering degrading of forest account for up to fifteen percent of the earth’s

emissions. This is extremely unfortunate since now is the time we should be preserving forests to

cut back on emissions, and decrease the apparent global warming temperature increases.

In the article, Chris Mooney acknowledges the efforts being made in order to enforce

preservation of the forests, Brazil in particular. Although the thought is present, the strides being

made aren’t strong enough and too drawn out because the problem is taking place right now.

Brazil is said to enforce plans of terminating illegal deforestation and restore several million

hectares of land by the year 2030. At the time of this article, 2030 was roughly fourteen years

away, which seems to be awfully prolonged bearing in mind that this is a current, modern day

problem and is only getting worse as time proceeds. Mooney applauds that the problem is being

noticed, but the dilemma is that it is being delayed much more than it should.
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“Deforestation Today: It’s Just Business.” Union of Concerned Scientists, 01 December 2010.
https://www.ucsusa.org/global-warming/solutions/stop-deforestation/deforestation-today-
business.html#.Wl7hfTqouP9 Accessed on 16 January 2018.

The author of this article relates the inputs of deforestation to things such as diets,

widespread farming, and import/ export business enterprises. Unlike the older days of

deforestation, where deforestation was simply families chopping small areas of trees for

resources to survive, modern-day deforestation has a larger goal. Based on the article,

deforestation now days is driven by the aspiration for larger agriculture fields, more enterprise

for businesses, and ultimately more money. These desires are wanted by people world- wide so

consequently, people cutting down mass amounts of trees is also world- wide. Precisely, much

like the previous articles, Brazil is the leading exasperation of this issue. The author links

Brazil’s production of products such as soybeans ad beef to the negative impacts of

deforestation.

A new solution to decrease the amount of destroying forests is known as REDD+.

Throughout the passage about what can be done REDD+ proves to be the most hopeful solution

to the severe issue. REDD+ is a policy produced which is an acronym for reducing emissions

from deforestation and forest degradation plus pro- forest activities. This policy is introduced to

many of the most popular countries known for deforestation and for their numerous tropical

rainforests. Many places have taken this offer into consideration, especially large companies that

have a reputation that they don’t want associated with harm. Therefore, despite what many

believe, the article points out that the smaller family companies and farmers are typically the

ones that are difficult to persuade and convince. All they want to is survive and make enough to

do so, while these bigger companies accompany a bigger reputation.