You’d think it would be obvious that if you change one thing on the planet, even a small thing, and it will in some way affect everything else. Most people don’t see or understand this, at least on a level that matters. Rather than give a long winded explanation of what is happening to our environment, I’ll summarize: When you destroy trees, you remove not just a small part of the planet’s ecosystem, you remove a MAJOR part of it. What is an ecosystem? . . . Basically a system of life. I’m not just talking about bugs and birds. We are all part of Earth’s system, which includes the air we breathe, food we eat and water we drink.
One of the most critical part of that ecosystem is trees. Trees are vital to the processing of gases in our atmosphere, including but not limited to oxygen. They are also vital to the life cycle of water, soil fertility so it can produce food, the regulation of temperature of the planet, to sustain countless life forms and much more. Trees are not just a minor part of our planet, they FUNDAMENTAL to life on this planet. But we are cutting them down when we should be planting them. Yes wood is great for furniture and building houses, but the rapid clearing of forests is causing enormous but less obvious damage.
Primary environmental problems:
- Trees are being cut down faster than they are being replaced. This reduces water that completes the cycle, reduces trees further, degrades air and soil quality, and reduces life in general. All life is affected.
- Water is being polluted. This affects all life because all life relies on healthy water.
What we are doing about it:
There are countless things that need to change, but we can start with the major ones:
Reforestation: we are aligning with other organizations who know very well the importance of trees, and directly funding replanting of trees. That means buying seedlings and planting them. It also means buying the land to plant the trees which is not a cheap option, but it is the quickest way to get things done.- Educating the public on the importance of trees: The more people that understand the importance and relevance of trees, the more people that will support the conservation of forests.
We recognize the need for development, i.e. building shopping malls and residential areas. But the problem with development is rather than integrating development with nature, we are clearing nature for development.
Billions can be spent by our governments on water pipelines and water desalination plants, research into global warming etc., but barely anything at all is spent on the actual cause of the problem which is deforestation. We are destroying the environment then wasting money, time and energy on action that doesn’t even address the cause of the problem. For example, to cope with drought in Australia, we spend billions on desalination plants. Desalination plants are expensive, and they eventually contribute to the degradation of the environment. The waste product from desalination processes is basically very salty water – it can either be pumped deep underground, or back into the ocean. Both options actually do more harm. Desalination is merely a short term solution that leads to further problems.