Tropical forests include dense rainforests, where rainfall is abundant year-round; seasonally moist forests, where rainfall is abundant, but seasonal; and drier, more open woodlands. Tropical forests of all varieties are disappearing rapidly as humans clear the natural landscape for construction, to build roads and urban areas and make room farms and pastures (Lindsey, 2007). Although deforestation meets some of the human needs, it also has profound, sometimes devastating, consequences, including extinction of flora and fauna, social conflict, and climate change, challenges that are not just local, but global. At the current rate of deforestation, the world's rain forest may completely vanish in the next century (Lindsey, 2007).
Jungle burned for agriculture in southern Mexico.
(By Jami Dwyer via Wikimedia Commons)
Deforestation has many negative effects on the environment. The most dramatic impact is a loss of habitat for millions of species. Seventy percent of Earth’s land animals and plants live in forests, and many cannot survive the deforestation that destroys their homes (National Geographic, 2015). The forests are the home to a large number of animals; trees are also an important component of the water cycle (Bose, 2012). The roots of trees hold the soil together and prevent soil erosion. Deforestation at such alarming rate has been a cause of constant worries for environmentalists the world over (Bose, 2012).
In some developing countries, massive deforestation is on-going and shaping climate and geography (Science daily, 2015). Deforestation may lead to a lot of causes, ranging from slow forest degradation to sudden and catastrophic wildfires. Deforestation results from removal of trees without sufficient reforestation; however, even with reforestation, significant biodiversity loss may occur Moreover, deforestation also alters the hydrologic cycle, the moisture in the atmosphere and the amount of water in the soil and groundwater