Down with the trees goes valuable medicinal resources and a great number of production resources. "Again, William Stevens proposed that, "What does it matter? Apart from the value attached to life in general, natural ecosystems provide the materials of human sustenance. That is where crops originally came from. Forests contain untapped riches in form of medicines." (Bender. 121). Another important fact is that trees, through photosynthesis, clean the earth's carbon dioxide and release oxygen into the atmosphere. It is clear to see that deforestation is not merely trees being destroyed; it also complimentary with other issues such as the global warming and the loss of bio diversity.
According to Norman Myers, an expert on environment and development for the World Wildlife Fund, "The earth constantly maintains 700 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Fossil fuels emit another 5.8 billion metric tons of CO2 into the air each ear, while the burning of tropical rainforests emits roughly 1.8 billion metric tons of CO2 - both contributing to a buildup of carbon dioxide that will soon trigger the greenhouse effect." (Vesterman. 296). It also has been predicted that by the year 2020, the emissions of carbon dioxide could see a 5 billion metric ton increase and carbon dioxide would be released at 10.21 billion metric tons annually. The burning of these rainforests doesn't only add to the carbon dioxide buildup, it also destroys the home to thousands of species of plants and animals.
At the rate at which we are felling trees, we lose 10,000 species annually. William Stevens reasons, "What does it matter? Apart from the value attached to life in general, natural ecosystems provide the materials of human sustenance." (Bender. 123). We can put no value on what the diversity of flora and fauna provide mankind. Picture the environment as a machine, and imagine our wildlife as a cog in the machine, disturbing one aspect of nature will send it into discord.
