The Forest Buddies |
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Save The Forests, Save Our Lives |
| Disruption of the hydrologic cycle- Effects of soil and wind erosion |
| Agriculture Wind erosion causes the loss of topsoil. Hence crops have poor yield. Water shortage Deforestation prevents soil from binding together. Hence, wind erosion can take place easily. This soil may pollute the water and make it unsafe for drinking. Furthermore, the soils may even end up blocking water flow. Extreme fluctuations in water flow cause a lack of drinking and irrigation water. Farming will be affected. A lack of safe, potable water can also lead to a surge in the spread of communicable diseases. Fisheries As sediments build up in the rivers as a result of erosion, fisheries can be affected adversely. Coral reefs can be threatened, leading to a loss of biodiversity and unavailability of fishes in the area. Huge economic and environmental losses for fisheries can follow. Effects on the economy, fatalities and injuries Landslides pose a serious threat to both the economy and humans. Huge amounts of money have to be spent to damaged properties and infrastructure in the landslide. Relief for people living in an affected area also incurs huge costs. Landslides may also affect fisheries and tourist destinations. Lives may be lost. An indirect cost can come from the loss of productivity of some crops, damaged infrastructure and reduced property values. The effects of landslides are due to our own actions. Let us work together to create more awareness so as to prevent excessive deforestation. Devastation of structures and water pollution Buildings are damaged by the landslides. Landslides and soil erosion lead to sediments accumulation of water courses, lakes and dams. As a result, sunlight is unable to reach the aquatic plants. Eventually, the plants die as they are unable to photosynthesize. Aquatic animals depending on these plants to survive are also killed as a result. Landslides and soil erosion occur mostly where development has taken place. In other areas, soil erosion may carry along poisonous mercury from mine sites. The water becomes unsafe for drinking and aquatic life perishes. Flooding as a result of deforestation Just how important are forests? Forests store a vast amount of water. Rainwater trapped on the leaves may evaporate into the air. Also, the raindrop takes a longer time to fall to the ground and this prevents rapid run-off and soil erosion. Furthermore, trees in the forests absorb water from the soil and this can prevent soil erosion. Lastly, the roots of trees bind the soil tightly together, also preventing erosion from occurring. In the event of deforestation, these protective mechanisms are lost and soil erosion will prevail. So how can this cause flooding? Floods occur when too much sediments block the flow of streams or rivers and they eventually breaks their banks, causing floods. Flooding of forests to create dams causes trees to decay. This releases sulphur dioxide into the water, killing aquatic life. |
| Sources: |
| Water cycle. (2007, December 13). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 11:53, December 27, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Water_cycle&oldid=177724768 OMAFRA Staff; G. Wall - Ontario Institute of Pedology; C.S. Baldwin - Ridgetown College of Agricultural Technology; I.J. Shelton - Ontario Institute of Pedology (November 22, 2006). Soil Erosion - Causes and Effects. Retrieved 28 December 2007 from Ontario Government. © Copyright 2007 Queen's Printer for Ontario. Website: http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/engineer/facts/87-040.htm |
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