IMPORTANCE OF FOREST IN THE WORLD :
The importance of forests cannot be underestimated. We depend on forests for our
survival, from the air we breathe to the wood we use. Besides providing habitats for animals and
livelihoods for humans, forests also offer watershed protection, prevent soil erosion and mitigate
climate change.
Forests are vital to life on Earth. They purify the air we breathe, filter the water we drink,
prevent erosion, and act as an important buffer against climate change.
Why Forests Are Important :
• Forests produce oxygen....
• Forests are the world's largest storehouses of carbon....
• Forests keep people cool too....
⚫ Forests influence the weather.....
• Forests provide habitats countless species. ...
• Forests clean the air....
• Forests help fight erosion....
• Forests can provide medicine.
• Prevention and control of soil erosion: Forests play a significant role in the prevention and
control of soil erosion by water and wind....
• Flood Control: ADVERTISEMENTS:...
• Checks on spread of deserts: ...
⚫ Increase of soil fertility: ...
• Effect on Climate:
Trees reduce air pollution. Trees fight the atmospheric greenhouse effect. Trees
conserve water and reduce soil erosion. Trees save energy. The social benefits include access to
forest products that households rely on for their subsistence, such as firewood, fodder for
livestock and timber for housing. The main ecological benefit is higher biodiversity in the tropical
forests.
The forests can be conserved in the following manner:
1. Introducing afforestation programs.
2. Controlling forest fires.
3. Proper utilization of forest resources.
4. Proper care should be taken to protect the forests from pests and
diseases.
Forests are recognized as an integral part of national economies, providing a wide range of
production inputs, environmental goods, food, fuel, medicines, household equipment, building
material and raw materials for industrial processing. Trees are vital. As the biggest plants on the
planet, they give us oxygen, store carbon, stabilise the soil and give life to the world's wildlife.
They also provide us with the materials for tools and shelter. Forest is a large wild area left to
grow naturally. They mostly have natural occurrence but in some cases may be planted by
humans. Forest Plays a vital role in balancing the ecosystem. Forest occupies over 4 billion
hectares of world land.
The estimated total value of the world's forests is as much as $150 trillion-nearly
double the value of global stock markets. The ability of forests to regulate the climate through
carbon storage is by far the largest component of that total value, accounting for as much as
90%.Water is one of the most important commodities on Forest Service lands, and the cleanest
water flows from healthy, forested watersheds. The most effective way to approach ecological
issues is to consider them at a watershed level. Forests provide people with an array of resources
including fresh air, clean water and nutritious foods. Many also associate them with physical
recreation and good mental health. What is perhaps less known is that forests are also a vital
source of medicine. forest resources means those products, uses, and values associated with
forestland, including recreation and aesthetics, fish, forage, soil, timber, watershed, wilderness,
and wildlife.
Trees provide many benefits to us, every day. They offer cooling shade, block cold
winter winds, attract birds and wildlife, purify our air, prevent soil erosion, clean our water, and
add grace and beauty to our homes and communities.
Forests also provide non-carbon services that are
essential for human societies to thrive: from its role in sustaining livelihoods to providing water
and food hectares of forest are destroyed.
security, and regulating global rainfall patterns. However, each year approximately 12 million
Forest conservation is the practice of planting and maintaining forested areas for the
benefit and sustainability of future generations. The conservation of forest also stands & aims at a
quick shift in the composition of trees species and age distribution. Standing forests also address
the impacts of climate change. They absorb greenhouse gases, regulate water flows and protect
coastal communities from extreme events and sea level rise. In addition, they provide migrating
plant and animal species routes to resilient habitats.
The undisputed number 1 is probably the most famous forest on earth, the South
American Amazon. The forest of all forests, with its fabulous 5,500,000 km2, not only has the
largest area, but is also home to one in ten species existing on earth.
Forest structure affects habitat quality for many wildlife species. Tree density, canopy
height, percent canopy closure, and the number of standing and fallen dead trees are some key
structural features that affect habitat quality. Each wildlife species responds differently to changes
in forest structure. When forests are cut down, much of that stored carbon is released into the
atmosphere again as CO2. This is how deforestation and forest degradation contribute to global
warming. The consensus among climate scientists is that CO2 from tropical deforestation now
makes up less than 10 percent of global warming pollution.
Cadet Priyansh Gupta
WB21SWA103372
2 Bengal Battalion (open)
