Global Warming is a world wide concern, affecting ecosystems worldwide, disrupting economies and altering the lives of humans everywhere. Though we all know it is an important issue, we refuse to go completely “green”, and depend on alternate energy sources and safer, eco-friendly means of transportation. As if it were a trivial issue, humanity has pushed the matter aside, focusing on economic and governmental issues.

           Just what is Global Warming? It is the deterioration of the O-Zone layer and the steady rising of the global temperature. Ever wondered why the summers have been getting warmer? It’s because carbon dioxide (CO2) gases are trapped within the Earth’s atmosphere, causing temperatures to go up. CO2 is released from cars, factories, and power plants, in the form of smog. When the smog is released into the air, it weakens the protective O-Zone layer. When this layer is damaged, more of the suns rays become trapped inside the atmosphere, causing temperatures to rise and melting the polar ice caps. If the ice caps were to completely melt, the ocean’s waters would rise and we would be looking at significant loss in land mass.

           Trees are nature’s way of cleaning up smog. During the day, the trees take in the carbon dioxide and purify it to be released into the air again. One big air purification plant is the Amazon Rainforest, where the various trees and plants clean the air and reduce the smog levels that are harming our Earth. If we lose the Amazon, we lose our last fighting chance to stop what our pollutants have set in motion.

 

           The Amazon is predicted to become a desolate savannah in about forty years if deforestation and global warming continues to destroy it. Today, more than 100 trees are being cut down daily by loggers alone, and there is already a lack of clean oxygen in the air. Just like humans, the Amazon is a living ecosystem that depends on clean air to survive. If there are more pollutants in the air than there are trees to purify the air, the Amazon cannot thrive. Without any trees in the area, the CO2 levels will rise and the surrounding area will spread the carbon dioxide throughout the atmosphere.

            Scientific theories have stated that the effects of Global Warming can be minimized, but without the Amazon our efforts to reduce the damage will be useless. The consequences are real and can be noted in as little as a few decades. The greatest threats are the rising sea levels and the decreasing amount of rainfall. Pollutants in the air have now reduced the average rainfall of the world by twenty percent. All of this contributes to the destruction of the Amazon, where a change in temperature can disrupt the entire ecosystem. With all of these factors contributing to the deforestation of the Amazon, the beautiful landscapes of the rainforest will become a desert six times faster than previously predicted.

           Without quick and decisive calls to action, the Amazon could reach a point of no return. With continued deforestation and the effects of Global Warming, this beautiful rainforest could be lost forever. The Amazon is not alone in suffering from the Earth’s warming climate. Forests and ecosystems all over the globe have been disrupted or have been forced to adapt to newer ways of living. The people of this planet are thinking too slow and waiting around while one of the world’s most precious natural resources is being torn apart at the hands of man and the pollutants we have contaminated the planet with.