REFORESTATION
By Anton Antonio
January 18, 2016
I have often been asked this question: “If you were to recommend just one initiative
or solution to the different environmental problems, what will it be?” After a three-year academic study in
environmental science, I’ve come to realize that environmental problems are so
diverse and multifarious that conceptualizing a single cure-all solution will
practically be like formulating a single pill (a “wonder drug”) that could cure
all conceivable medical problems of man.
It’s a tough call but there should be one. I would always answer, often automatically,
“reforestation”.
Here is a researched material that supports reforestation as
the generic solution to most environmental problems. “Reforestation is the natural and intentional
restocking of existing forests and woodlands that have been depleted, usually
through deforestation. Reforestation can
be used to improve the quality of human life by soaking up pollution and dust
from the sir, rebuild natural habitats and ecosystems, mitigate global warming
since forest facilitate biosequestration of atmospheric carbon dioxide, and
harvest for resources, particularly timber.
The term reforestation is similar to afforestation, the process of
restoring and recreating areas of woodlands or forests that may have existed
long ago but were deforested or otherwise removed at some point in the
past. Sometimes the term
re-afforestation is used to distinguish between the original forest cover and
the later re-growth of forest to an area.
Special tools, e.g. tree planting bar, are used to make planting of
trees easier and faster. Forests are an
important part of the global carbon cycle because trees and plants absorb
carbon dioxide through photosynthesis.
By removing the greenhouse gas from the sir, forests function as
terrestrial carbon sinks, meaning they store large amounts of carbon. At any time, forests account for as much as
double the amount of carbon in the atmosphere.
Even as more anthropogenic carbon is produces, forests remove around three
billion tons of anthropogenic carbon every year. This amounts to about 30% of all carbon
emissions from fossil fuels. Therefore,
an increase in the overall forest cover around the world would tend to mitigate
global warming. There are four major
strategies available to mitigate carbon emissions through forestry activities:
(1) increase the amount of forested land through a reforestation process; (2)
increase the carbon density of existing forests at a stand and landscape scale;
(3) expand the use of forest products that will sustainably replace fossil-fuel
emissions; and (4) reduce carbon emissions that are caused from deforestation
and degradation.” (Wikipedia)
A honest-to-goodness reforestation program, however, will
never work as long as the illegal harvesting of timber and other forest
resources remains unchecked. At present,
there are sufficient laws that protect forests… it is, however, in the aspect
of enforcement that epic failures happen.
The continued illegal harvesting of forest resources will render useless
any effort at reforestation.
Thoughts to
promote positive action…
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REFERENCE:
Wikipedia, (2016).
“Reforestation”. Retrieved on
January 18, 2016 from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reforestation
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