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areas in their natural state, even if these areas could be developed
for economic gain.
There was once a very nice quote aired on the National
Geographic channel, and it is so relevant in this context that I cannot
help mentioning it here: Nature can meet our needs, but can it fulfil
our greed? Mother Nature has been bountiful enough in her gifts of
fertile lands, rivers and lakes for irrigation and fishing, minerals for
industries, and what have we repaid her with? Lust and greed... for
more lands which we can put to agriculture, more lands to dig up for
mining, more lands to erect soaring skyscrapers and factories with
chimneys ever belching out foul exhausts, more lands cleared for
building concrete highways, more rivers to defile their waters with
the poisonous discharge of industrial wastes. And still we ask for
more, shamelessly, to feed the many mouths of the ever increasing
human population, growing in a way that could put to shame the
Learnian Hydra of Greek mythology. If we are that eager not to
waste any patch of land that could be useful for economic purposes,
why don’t we just cover the surface of the earth with firms and
industries and agricultural lands and every other form of monument
that proclaims the success of human civilization, science and
technology, leaving out just the deserts and rugged rocky mountains,
and sit content while the earth reels under the pressure of mankind’s
victory, and eventually gives way to a premature extinction?
Before going into the rather blunt way to reason out why we
need to conserve forests, by pointing out their needs in the survival
of mankind, let me just put forth a question. Why should we not
think of the flora and fauna as creatures that have the right to
inhabit this earth as much as we do? Why not follow the policy of
altruism, of ‘live and let live’ ? Besides, they form an invaluable
source of natural wealth that we cannot afford to lose... and the
sense of aesthetics should also advise us to appreciate their beauty
and thus refrain from wantonly destroying them.
But let us now focus on the more significant aspect of why the
conservation of what little is left of wilderness in this world is
absolutely vital for our survival. The importance of trees and plants
in our life is unquestionable, and their destruction could well mean a
speedy obliteration of all forms of life from the surface of this planet.
Green plants absorb carbon dioxide during photosynthesis, thus
reducing its content in the air we breathe in. Not only that, but they
also draw harmful pollutants from the air, thus rendering it pure, and
small thanks we give them for such a noble service. Their roots help
to bind together loose soil particles, thus preventing landslides and
floods in shallow rivers of adjoining areas. The heedless eradication
of forest lands have often led to ominous floods in many places in
the world in the recent past with heavy casualties, and such events
will recur more if we do not mend our ways in future. Trees help to
induce rainfall in surrounding areas, something which has often
proved absolutely crucial for life to sustain, particularly in dry areas.
Recent studies by experts have shown that the fast dwindling forest
lands in Central Africa has led to an alarming paucity of rainfall,
which in turn is now contributing to the slow but sure expansion of
the bleak and desolate Sahara desert beyond its boundaries, and it
may one day engulf the entire continent. The relentless act of
deforestation has accelerated the dangers of global warming, a
problem that has already become so serious as to plague the very
existence of mankind. Perhaps the most important role that is played
by green plants is as the primary producers of the food chain. They
are the only autotrophs, i.e. living organisms that are capable of
synthesizing their own food within their body by imbibing ingredients
from their natural surroundings. All other animals, including human
beings, are heterothrophs, relying heavily on green vegetation
directly or indirectly for supply of food and energy. We should
therefore be well able to contemplate what a sorry state we would
be in if we deplete this planet of its forests and wilderlands.
Forests serve as the natural habitat for animals and birds, and if
their elegance, beauty and innocence aren’t reason enough for the
‘practical’ man to acknowledge the need to protect them, let us also
have a look at why their existence determines the lifespan of the
human civilization. The animals also serve as important links in the
food cycle. Besides, the brutal killing of animals have led to the
disappearance of many a species from the face of the earth, and this,
we must remember, to some extent contributes to the disturbance
of ecological balance. If the natural balance gets upset, it would be a
challenge for man to thrive in this world. (A few examples of species
extinct or endangered are the dodo bird, the fur animals like the sea
otters, snow foxes and snow leopards, hunted down for their furs to
decorate the garbs of the luxurious Mandarins of China and ladies of
affluent European or American families, aurochs, who vanished due
to the huge demand for their meat, leopards, tigers and other wild
cats for their skin, claws and teeth, sold at sky‐high prices in
international black markets.)
Coming to the issue of economic gain, let us not overlook the
fact that even if clearing up forest lands to make room for agriculture
or agro‐based industries, mining, or other industries may yield huge
profits, the forests themselves can serve no less as a source of
livelihood for hundreds of people. The main source of income from
forests are the forest products, particularly the non‐timber products
as they discourage the cutting down of trees. The main such items
for commercial use are lumber, paper and forage for livestock. Not
only these, but often the forests, for example the Himalayan forests,
yield medicinal herbs, fungi, and the trees also provide edible fruits
and nuts. Often, resins, shellac, lacquer, wood‐fuel are also obtained.
An encouraging and effective idea, as seen from its implementation
in the Sunderbans, is to engage the native people living in and
around the forest area in the conservation process by allowing them
to enjoy the lucratives earned from forest resources.
In the end, it comes down to weighing the pros and cons of
clearing up forested lands for other, more demanding, economic
purposes. But should the decisions not go in favour of the flora and
fauna that have, from prehistoric times, been our constant
companions, let us bear in mind that the world would be a dreary
and lonely place indeed for us humans to thrive in without them.
Mangrove forests
Glaciers melting, endangering polar bears and penguins, whales