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A Sample Essay on Saving Trees
"A nation that destroys its soils destroys itself. Forests are the lungs of our land, purifying the air and giving fresh strength to our people."
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Trees have long been a subject of interest and a topic of discussion - and it's no wonder; they represent life, growth, peace, and nature. Since the beginning of evolution, trees have been a symbol of wisdom, fertility, life, and culture across the world. Trees also give us hope and insight, and courage to persevere, even in the harshest conditions. Trees teach us to stay rooted while soaring to great heights. Because trees absorb and store CO2 away from the atmosphere, forests form "carbon sinksâ€, trapping tons of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere and protecting us from human-made climate change. Simply put, the more trees we plant, and the more we slow down and reverse deforestation, the greater the Earth’s ability to lock carbon out of the atmosphere and slow global warming. As ill luck would have it, deforestation and the burning of fossil fuels have caused an increase in carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that has caused the earth’s temperature to rise. This has led to more extreme and damaging weather, as well as the melting of polar ice caps at a greater rate than ever recorded before. This human-made change in climate has implications for Arctic livelihoods, wildlife and for sea level, with significant consequences for low-lying land and islands and the people that live there.
At a time when greenhouse gases in the atmosphere are rising, temperatures are going up, springs are arriving earlier, ice sheets are melting, sea level is rising, patterns of rainfall and drought are changing, heat waves worsening, and oceans acidifying, our moral obligation to future generations and mother earth demands no less of us. Taking care of the earth is our utmost responsibility. If we want to leave behind a better world for our future generations, we can’t ignore the quality of the environment we leave for them. Planting a tree is a symbol of a looking-forward kind of action which, makes us think for the generations yet unborn. Let’s not forget - someone's sitting in the shade today, because someone planted a tree a long time ago. We must also protect the forests for those, who can't speak for themselves such as the birds, animals, fish and trees. A future without trees or vegetation would not only be scary, but deadly for all the living beings including mankind. Trees provide us with many benefits necessary for survival, including clean air, filtered water, shade, and food. They support the environment in various ways and without them; life on earth would be impossible. Trees exhale for us so that we can inhale them to stay alive. We plant trees, because they change lives. They provide food, forage for animals, and wood for fuel and construction. They increase agricultural yields, improve water infiltration and aquifer recharge, and protect soils from wind and water erosion.
The World Bank estimates that forests contribute to the livelihoods of 1.6 billion people and that 60 million are totally dependent on forests. Agroforestry farming - using trees and forests helps to break the cycle of poverty and deforestation by meeting the need for timber and fuel wood, fruits and forest products, through sustainable planting and management of trees and forests. It also sustains forest ecosystems thereby encouraging the return of endangered species. Forests hold a huge number of plant species, which are a huge resource in terms of medicine and botanical knowledge. One in four ingredients in our medicine comes from rainforest plants. Forests and trees provide vital habitats for the majority of the world’s plant and animal species. Rainforests cover less than 2% of the earth’s total surface area and yet are home to 50% of the earth’s plants and animals. Healthy forests help absorb greenhouse gases and carbon emissions that are caused by human civilization and contribute to global climate change.
Unfortunately, in spite of all these benefits, trees and plants are being burned, degraded and logged at astonishing rates. Eighty per cent of the world's forests are already destroyed. 80,000 Acres of forests disappear from the earth every day ! More than 50,000 square miles of forest are lost every year ! That's equivalent to 48 football fields every minute. Deforestation comes in many forms, including fires, clear-cutting for agriculture, ranching and development, unsustainable logging for timber, and degradation due to climate change. It is estimated that a third of the world’s arable land has been lost to deforestation since 1960.The world’s rainforests could completely vanish in a hundred years at the current rate of deforestation. Considering that about 80% of the world’s terrestrial biodiversity can be found in forests, deforestation puts at risk a majority of the earth’s biodiversity. 28,000 species are expected to become extinct by the next 25 years due to deforestation.
What you can do? Plant a tree. Save trees around you. Speak up to save a tree, rather than being a bystander. Form Planters’ Club. Tree by tree, you can make a difference. The type of tree you plant matters. Talk to an arborist about which species are native to your area and will eventually get big enough to clean the air and water. Small, ornamental trees won’t contribute much. Reduce paper and paper products use. Share your love for trees and forests with other people. Show that standing up for trees is something you believe in. Showing that you care about trees is a good way to help other people start taking action, too. Spread the word on social media. Last but not least, remember - He who plants a tree, plants a hope. You plant a tree for the future, not just for a photo shoot or for cheap publicity. Let’s promote and protect trees and forests, through sustainable community forestry projects and dry lands projects, in order to reduce deforestation, prevent extinction of species and promote biodiversity.
