Tropical Deforestation
Introduction The tropical rain forest, one of the worldˇ¦s most valuable ecosystems is under threat because of our need for farmland, timber, minerals and other resources. Tropical rain forest, which spreads over more than sixty countries, counts for almost two fifth of the worldˇ¦s forest, contains half of all plants and animal species, is facing deforestation. The definition of tropical deforestation Deforestation means that the land is converted permanently to other usage other than forest purpose. ... However, deforestation means that the forest cover is destroyed. According to the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization), "Deforestation refers to change of land use with depletion of tree crown cover to less than 10 percent," it simply means the clearance of forest. The deforesting rate of tropical forest Based upon the data from the 1970s, there may have been 1.6 billion hectares of tropical forest before human-caused deforestation began in earnest, and this area has already been reduced to about 1. ... 1 Deforestation is now proceeding at an annual rate of at least one to two percent per year. ... Summary of the essay Tropical forests are difficult to regenerate due to the nature of its soil. ... Tropical deforestation involves many causes such as commercial logging, debt problem, and increasing population. Therefore, a perfect solution for tropical deforestation is never easy to find. Moreover, tropical deforestation has various seriously harmful consequences. ... Hence, tropical deforestation should be stopped immediately. Difficulty for Tropical Forest Regeneration Many people might believe that the tropical forest could re-grow easily, but in fact it is not. One of the most important factors that cause the difficulty for tropical forest regeneration is the nature of tropical soil. The nutrient recycle In tropical forest, the soils are relatively free of nutrient; with a few exceptions, the nutrients in a tropical forest ecosystem are mostly in the plants. ... In this case, the tropical forest will be able to re-grow, and at least, for a few rotations. This process is known as the nutrient recycle of tropical forest2. Difficulty for nutrient recycle However, not all tropical soil fit this pattern. ... It is easy to conclude that tropical forest proceed the ability to re-grow after it has been cut down; nevertheless, the probability that it will return after it has been cleared is by no means to be measured, but in fact at most cases, nutrient recycle does not occur. Barrier to regrowth Contrary to the popular image of tropical forest that is filled with relentless plants, the true tropical forest seems unable to be reclaimed after it has been cut down, and there are several reasons for it.