Run Forest Run Essay

“Run forest, run” Forests are being destroyed at an amazing rate of 32 million acres per year, or nearly six square miles each hour (Struck, 2011, pg. 29). Deforestation is the clearing of a forest, or section of a forest for agricultural or commercial use. This clearing can be done by cutting the trees, burning the forest, or even in natural ways such as insect swarms or natural disaster (Struck, 2011, pg. 29). The clearing of Earth’s forests have started to impact the planet in ways many never thought possible. From the release of stored carbon into the atmosphere, to changing the water cycle of the entire planet, deforestation is wreaking unimaginable havoc. Deforestation causes a domino effect of destruction. The loss of the trees is inadvertently …show more content…
Carbon is a greenhouse gas meaning that rather than allowing for heat trapped on Earth to be released into space, carbon and other greenhouse gases trap the heat here on Earth. Deforestation is the second largest source of carbon dioxide being released into the atmosphere. The only thing that releases more carbon, is the burning of fossil fuels (Van der Werf et al., 2009, para. 1). About half of a tree’s weight is stored carbon. When the tree is cut, burned, or left to rot, this carbon is released and combines with oxygen. This combination is then released as carbon dioxide into the atmosphere (Struck, 2011, para. 12). About 20% of the annual greenhouse gas emissions are produced by tropical deforestation (Asner, n.d., para 1). Due to the increased amount of carbon and other greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere, scientists state that a global climate change has already occurred and continues to get worse. This could spell disaster for all of the organisms on the planet who rely on the climate to remain constant for their survival. Not only is deforestation causing an increase in carbon in the atmosphere, it also leads to the erosion of the topsoil in affected