Ecological Challenges Facing Humanity an Overview of the Topic

Different types of living organisms depend heavily on carbon and water to live. The disruption of the natural carbon and water cycles and processes interferes with the biological distribution of species. It also has an effect on human life and everyday lives. Plant cover (particularly forests) and water bodies have an impact on the carbon cycle and the hydro cycle. Carbon and water cycles are disrupted in less forested areas. This is due to the fact that trees serve as water catchment areas, but where there is no tree cover, there is no rain. Trees rise slowly when there isn’t enough moisture. As a result, there will be an increase of carbon percentage in the atmosphere in form of Carbon dioxide which might result in an increase in temperature. When an environment is well forested there would be a little percentage of carbon dioxide in the air since the trees absorb the gas through a process known as photosynthesis.

Forests act as habitat for many other living organisms. The number of the organisms might reduce when there is no enough plant cover. This population change might be as a result of migration or death of the living organisms. There are many factors that lead to disruption of carbon and water cycles and also biodiversity, for example, burning of fossil fuels, poor agricultural practices, and deforestation among others. The earth too does not lose its beauty, since forest encourages rainfall ensuring continuation in the growth of plants and also providing water for animals. I, therefore, suggest we educate people on the importance of the forest to the society and its benefit to both animals and plant to ensure, the future survival of this species on earth is taken into account.

Deforestation and the Carbon Cycle

Deforestation actually refers to the removal of the forest cover or simply cutting down trees to use the land available for other practices. This means there is no intention of replacing the cut-down trees. On the other hand, carbon cycle refers to the process by which carbon is transferred from the air as it undergoes the recycling stage through the organisms and eventually released to the atmosphere. Carbon is found abundantly within the air existing as carbon dioxide. In human bodies, key molecules like the molecules of proteins, carbohydrates, as well as DNA comprise of Carbon as its main constituent.

Plants absorb Carbon Dioxide from the air and use it to process their own food which is available in form of carbohydrates, Fats, and proteins. Destroying forests, therefore, leads to excess carbon dioxide in the atmosphere because there are no plants to absorb it. The destroyed plants also give out more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere as they decompose. With all this CO2 in the atmosphere, climate might be altered in that the temperature might increase above the normal level. This clearly shows that destruction of forests results in the addition of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere leaving no option of reducing the same amount hence disrupting the normal flow of carbon. The end results will be elevated thermal readings and irregular weather patterns with higher temperature recordings due to heat traps as a result of elevated CO2 levels.

Deforestation and the Hydro/Water Cycle

“The water cycle is a process by which H2O vaporizes and becomes part of the air within the atmosphere, eventually forming clouds and later falling down on earth as torrential precipitates eventually undergoing evaporation and repeating the water cycle phase again. ”Trees play very important roles during the water cycle processes, therefore, cutting them down may affect how water flows from the ground into the atmosphere. When trees absorb moisture from the soil, they lose the water into the atmosphere again through a process known as transpiration through the leaves.

This helps in the formation of clouds that instigate rain which in turn maintains the forests. This, therefore, means that forests act as water catchment areas. Trees also hold the soil together during heavy rainfalls preventing soil erosion. This helps in maintaining normal soil conditions suitable for the trees to continue surviving. This ensures that the water cycle remains normal. When the trees are cut down, the water cycle is disrupted. There will be no tree to absorb moisture from the soil; no transpiration will take place too hence little water will be released into the atmosphere resulting in little rain. Little rain means slow growth of forests, therefore, water lost into the atmosphere through transpiration will be very low. This might result in climate change, for example, excessive heat.

Deforestation and species diversity

Species diversity refers to the measurement or the population of different animals and plants in a given area. Forests act as a habitat for many animals, plants, fungi and other microbial organisms. Each of these organisms also depends on one another for food and shelter, therefore they need the forest to survive. The forests have the different climatic condition, different soil and are found in different locations that only favor a particular species of plants or animals. When a forest is cut down, the animals and plants that lived there lose their habitat. This might lead to their death or migration in search of other suitable habitats leading to a reduction of their number, therefore leading to biodiversity decrease.

Conclusion

Intentional deforestation should be really discouraged since it has very negative effects on the environment. As discovered above, the disruption caused by deforestation on carbon and water cycles and diversity of species directly affects humans living in the affected areas. Not to forget to mention the animals and plants those consider the forests their homes. Therefore, I may suggest the introduction of strict laws monitoring the cutting of trees. It would also be advisable to encourage the planting of more trees to help maintain the normal ecological processes involved. By discouraging deforestation, we protect and ensure continuity of different species of animals and plants.

Making an effort to preserve the environment for me is much vital as this ensures species continuation on all biosphere. I feel it is not appropriate to degrade the environment and expect the effects not to cause calamities such as widespread droughts in sub-Saharan Africa, famine and hunger and poor crop productivity. The future generations of earth diverse lifeforms might face uncertain extinction if no effective efforts are adopted to make sure that environmental conservation is given a top priority. The principles of greenbelt movement should guide our very steps in trying to heal the world we have already degraded. Use of green energy, technology and production methods that are environmentally friendly will be a great step forward towards achieving environmental conservation.