|
Got Trees? Nope? Neither Do we.
Katia Lin  Source: epa.gov (NOAA TOVS satellite) Beginning in the late 18th century and the early 19th century, heavily populated areas such as Western Europe and North America started the heavy manufacture of machinery. These machines found within new factories were highly efficient and could produce a massive amount of products such as metal parts of other machines and textiles within minutes. The economy of America flourished as well as trade between foreign countries for new products. In addition, there were new inventions bursting out of educated minds quite frequently. High technology, sophisticated tools, and new transportation vehicles that shape modern day society were just coming about then. All of these inventions and achievements are compiled into one time frame that is labeled as the Industrial Revolution. It sounded like a utopia to most in the 18th and 19th century but these machines are all steam powered. Researchers and scientists are now finding that that many of the harmful gases being released from factories world wide are building up, engulfing the earth and keeping heat in. Herbatious and woody stemmed plants such as trees and grasses normally take in these gases and release oxygen during photosynthesis but thousands of rainforests and grasslands are being destroyed (causing erosion) for industrial purposes that gases have no where to go but to sit in the air and let the temperature slowly rise. Many scientists call this the greenhouse effect because the sun’s rays can enter but cannot escape and heat the earth. The Industrial Revolution has evoked global problems that compromise the health of our planet and consequentially the future of ourselves. The Industrial Revolution has provoked many things including corruption. In places such as Africa, Central America, South America, and the South Pacific, many logging companies frequently ignore the laws of cutting down forested areas. “Some logging companies flout regulation, evade taxation, and offer bribes in order to cut more forests and increase profits.” Every day there is illegal cutting of “chicle” trees which are harvested for their sap, a great substitute for rubber and a main ingredient of chewing gum. These trees are very rare now because millions have been lost due to many large rubber and logging companies. In addition there is illegal cutting in more than twenty restricted zones and plans of building 15,000 kilometer highways in rainforests. It has gotten to the point where countries own a larger percentage of cut wood than forests themselves! The United States alone consumes 60% of all mahogany that is harvested. American and Japanese companies especially profit greatly from activities that destroy rainforests for paper, timber, chemicals, and oil. Natural resources are fragile and are becoming increasingly scarce. Rain forests are so important because they absorb the majority of sunlight that enters the earth for photosynthesis. Only 12-15% of sunlight is actually reflected. The Amazon Rainforest alone converts about one trillion pounds of carbon dioxide into oxygen. They are also so important because they are the oldest and most diverse ecosystems in the world. They allow animals and plants of all shapes and sizes to evolve and develop. They also provide 25% of all medicines that the United States and every other country consume because of the amount of different plants and funguses provided even within just a small area of the rainforest. For example, quinine, the only medicine that is effective against malaria could be found in South America until synthetic were invented. Tropical Rainforests provide homes for 50-90% of all organisms including 90% of our relative primates. When large companies plow down these wonderful rainforests, they bring down fifty million creatures along with it. This means that in addition to the large amounts of rare species murdered, many of the plants used to cure illnesses are lost forever as well. When the land is finally barren, it reflects 20% of the sun’s light instead of 12-15% and the land becomes very dry, impossible to cultivate, and basically useless. The final state of the land is a huge pile of brush and weed. This is also catastrophic because trees improve the quality of air that species breathe by trapping carbon and other particles produces by pollution. As soon as the trees are gone, the air becomes thick and highly toxic. In all of Central America, half of Africa, lots of South America, and parts of Southern Europe, there is more than 5 percent of deforested land. Western Europe has already lost 99% of its primary forest. In 1980, global deforestation was estimated at 17-20 million hectares a year. This is equivalent to the size of Britain. Before the Industrial Revolution, the mix of gases that made up the atmosphere remained relatively constant. However, accompanying the start of the Industrial Revolution was a massive growth of energy consumption, mainly through the burning of coal and fossil fuels. Steam engines and other machinery also required coal, releasing the first productions of carbon dioxide and other harmful gases which led to declining air quality in thousands of cities. The earth’s ozone layer protects all organisms from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet radiation. It remained at a generally constant level until the beginning of the industrial revolution/late 19th century. Each temporary depletion cycle could be overcome by a recovery period. However, the ozone being monitored over North America is showing scientists that the damage is well beyond any natural recovery. This is mainly due to human industrial activity maybe beginning with the invention of chloroflourocarbons that are used as coolants, cleaning agents, and propellants. These are very stable carbons that do not break down in the troposphere, continue to rise into the stratosphere, and begin to deplete the ozone. The depletion of ozone in the atmosphere resulted in “increased levels of dangerous ultraviolet radiation reaching the surface of the earth.” Within the last twenty years ozone levels have fallen by 10% affecting several of continents such as Asia, Africa, Europe, North America, and South America. Countries all over the world are realizing this catastrophic problem and are taking many different measures to deal with it. In Britain, politicians and scientists are working together for the national goal of reducing the greenhouse gas emission by 60% by 2050. The United States is positioning its economy to lead further research on new fuels and green automatic technologies. Japan is carrying out a new garbage system with many different cans to throw away garbage, recyclable cans, recyclable paper, recyclable plastics, cups and plastic eating wear, and more. Everyone is working much harder to keep our world green so that we can continue to live in a comfortable environment.
|