A Climate Changing One Tree at a Time

It's everywhere around us. You turn on CNN, and politicians are discussing climate change. You read an article in The New York Times, and a reporter is advocating ways to curb global warming. You ponder over the fate future generations, and you can't help but think about the state of the environment years from now. The earth's changing climate is a serious issue that floods the media and challenges leaders of the modern world. One of the dilemma's guiltiest culprits lies in the clearing of the world's forests: deforestation.

2015 has recently been confirmed as the hottest year on historical record, as it received the nod over a similarly hot and record-breaking 2014. With carbon dioxide emissions higher now than at any point in history, the world is facing its toughest environmental challenge yet. With a large majority of the earth's carbon dioxide emissions stemming from the burning of fossil fuels, becoming more aware of the exact effects of deforestation is of utmost importance for planning a sustainable future.

             
    This graphic is compliments of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

So what precisely is happening when our giant green buddies get chopped to the stump and burned to smithereens? One of the most negative impacts of deforestation is the large amount of carbon released into the atmosphere when trees are cut and burned. The carbon stored in these trees is released into the air as CO2, a greenhouse gas that traps heat close to the earth. When the sun's energy reaches the earth, part of the sunlight is reflected back off the surface in the form of infrared radiation. While most of the atmosphere's prominent gases, such as nitrogen and oxygen, allow infrared radiation to pass through them, other "greenhouse" gases absorb this energy and prevent it from escaping. Carbon dioxide and water vapor are two of the most prevalent greenhouse gases, with CO2 accounting for a whopping 82% of the total across the globe.

             
                                This image is provided by Charles Greene.

The buildup of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases is a direct cause of global warming. It is estimated that more than 1.5 million tons of carbon dioxide are released into the atmosphere every year due to deforestation, making up about 15% of all greenhouse gas emissions. That massive contribution is even larger than the total of gas emissions from all the world's cars and trucks, which constitutes just 14%.

To make matters worse, the carbon released from trees when they are chopped down is not the only factor contributing to the greenhouse gas effect and global warming. Forests play a vital role in absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, helping to reduce the effects of excessive CO2 emissions. By taking in carbon dioxide and releasing oxygen, trees are tremendously important in maintaining a healthy carbon cycle across the planet. However, as more and more forests disappear, there is less and less natural regulation on atmospheric carbon levels.

Unfortunately, the environmental nightmare doesn't stop there. Trees also make up a critical link of the water cycle, as they release water vapor into the air and absorb rainfall. This water vapor collects in the atmosphere and falls as rain, cooling the land. Deforestation eliminates this exchange, resulting in a land surface that radiates heat and thus contributes to higher temperatures.

Through these mechanisms, deforestation is playing a critical role in global warming, and the effects are quite alarming. With temperatures rising, sea levels are expected to rise up to 3 feet by the end of the 21st century! This will only further increase flooding, the erosion of beaches, and the frequency of tropical storms. The impact of global warming reaches much further than this though, as it influences crop production, ecosystem stability, human health, and many other systems of our planet.

            
                        This photograph is courtesy of Jocelyn Augustino.

These dramatic climate changes are forcing our world to act. The damage we have done is already monumental, but it's not too late to turn things back in the right direction! The 2015 Paris Climate Conference marked a glimmer of hope in bringing nations together on a global climate agreement. The deal brought the world's developed countries to agree to limit greenhouse gas emissions. With nations struggling to actually follow through on similar treaties in the past, whether or not this deal will actually be enforced and what this will mean for deforestation are still unclear, but at least it's a step in the right direction.

Where Have All the Good Trees Gone?

Get ready to hug some trees.

Trees are one of our friendliest allies. Whether they're combating climate change, preventing soil erosion, or simply providing you with a fun place to climb, trees make life on Earth healthier and cleaner. Indeed, trees limit water pollution, provide habitats for countless organisms, and even supply food. They don't just recycle oxygen; they keep the world turning.

Are you sick of trees yet? Don't worry; this blog isn't going to be a tirade about why we can't let the big, mean logging industries chop down Great Uncle George's 200-year-old oak tree, evicting two squirrels and a woodpecker. While trees truly are incredibly beneficial in all of the ways listed above, they also have some other extremely important uses. The high demands of wood for fuel and construction make forests quite a hot commodity. However, before going any further, we should understand exactly what deforestation is and what causes it.

Deforestation is the clearing of the earth's forests in order to harvest lumber and make the land available for other uses. According to the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization, about 18 million acres of forest are removed each year; that's about the size of Panama! For a different perspective, that's comparable to losing roughly 36 football fields of trees every single minute. If either of those statistics are particularly alarming, you should be at least partially relieved to hear that about 30% of the earth's land mass is still covered by our big green friends.

             
                  This photograph is compliments of the Texas State Aquarium.

Although there seem to be plenty of trees remaining, what is causing this mass destruction? Obviously logging industries play a major role in deforestation, but did you know that much of the world's timber is harvested illegally? From cutting trees to selling them as product, national laws regulate the entire process of harvesting wood, but many logging companies violate these restrictions across the world. One of the largest threats of illegal logging is chopping down more than is permitted by law, and this certainly contributes to the growing problem of deforestation.

Congress passed amendments in 2008 on a century-old law called the Lacey Act, which sought to ban illegal trafficking in wildlife. Now, the law is designed to include timber production, functioning to eliminate illegally sourced wood from the US market. While the law functions to enforce regulations and promote sustainable forest management, the war against illegal logging is far from over, and its impact continues to complicate the issue of deforestation.

             
                          This image is courtesy of Mark Godsell-Fletcher.

However, the high demands of wood for fuel and material are not the sole factor influencing man-caused deforestation. In light of the ever increasing world population, more and more forests are being cleared to make land available for a multitude of purposes. Urbanization is a direct cause of deforestation, as providing land for housing construction projects is an important demand in the world today. Additionally, agricultural demands are among the largest for clearing forests, as more farm space is required to raise the cattle that provide people with essential resources such as beef and dairy products.

However, before we begin shaking our heads in disapproval of how agricultural and logging industries exploit our trees, we should understand that the biggest cause of deforestation is actually forest fires. Millions of acres of woods are consumed by fire each year across the planet, totaling the amount lost to agriculture and logging put together! While some of these fires have natural causes, a shocking estimate of roughly 90% of wildfires in the US are actually caused by humans.

             
                         This picture is provided by Alexander Lesnyanskiy.

Whether it's leaving a campfire unattended, carelessly tossing away a cigarette, or burning garbage in a giant bonfire, humans are responsible for the destruction of countless trees. That kind of destruction isn't the type you'll read about in the newspaper when some corporate logging industry is facing a lawsuit for over-cutting; that's the kind of destruction that can be caused by people like you and me. Although I don't claim responsibility for ever starting a forest fire, we should keep this issue in perspective. The largest cause of deforestation lies directly among us, the people.

             
                               This image is compliments of David Cvet.

While deforestation is an alarming issue that demands immediate action from the world's leaders, policy-makers, and law enforcers, the issue is also greatly community-based. Our trees are essential to life on Earth, and creating a sustainable future for the next generation involves addressing the problem of deforestation at every level.