The Effects of Deforestation You Can See Today

Deforestation is affecting life as we know it. The clearing of forests began long ago, but today the issue is not something we can turn our heads from.

The consequences of our actions are visible today. 

Around the world, deforestation has damaged our planet and thousands of local communities. The more you look, the more you’ll understand deforestation’s impacts on us all.

Deforestation has broken ecosystems and the way of life for many animals. If we don’t want the damage to continue, we must understand the situation and stop contributing to it. 

Before you can help tackle deforestation, you should know the magnitude of its impacts on our planet. We find the issue most clear by laying out the effects of deforestation you can see today.

What Is Deforestation?

Deforestation is the human-driven clearing of forested lands. Over time, humans have cleared more and more forest areas to create room for agriculture, architecture, and animal grazing.

Deforestation occurs when hectares upon hectares of forest are cut down, and trees can no longer replenish on their own.

Clearing of forests occurs because “free” land offers short-term benefits: more room for housing, crops and greater access to raw materials. In the long run, deforestation has wreaked havoc on our planet in irreversible ways.

The Effects of Deforestation

In our modern lifestyles, it’s challenging to visualize the impacts of deforestation. If you haven’t yet witnessed the damaging effects first-hand, you are sure to in the near future.

If we don’t begin to address the issues now, the future of our planet won’t be as bright. Struggling to grasp the gravity of the situation is understandable, but there are certainly some effects that we can all see today.

Extinction of Plant and Animal Species

One of the most impactful and harmful effects of deforestation is the loss of animal and plant life. When forests are cleared, so are the territories of millions of species that call these forests home.

Plant and animal life depend on forests to survive. Without trees, species that live in forests face drastic temperature variations from day to night. Certain species weren’t built with the tools to survive without the forest cover and therefore ceased to exist. 

Not only are we losing species that we’ve indexed, but also one’s that haven’t yet been discovered. Because of deforestation, we’re even forecasting the extinction of foods like chocolate. Cacao trees that mainly grow in tropical forests are expected to be rarities by 2050.

You have deforestation to blame if you see a decrease in chocolate, monarch butterflies, and bananas.

Different ecosystems depend on forests for their survival.

Soil Erosion

As mentioned earlier, one of the leading causes of deforestation is the want for more agricultural lands. This desire is a heavily misguided cause.

In deforested areas, there is less water in the atmosphere. Trees play an essential role in controlling the water cycle. With fewer trees, less water in the atmosphere can be returned to the soil, resulting in dryer lands and the inability to grow crops.

Without forests, soil erodes and washes away, causing farmers to move to other areas and continue in a never-ending cycle. What’s left are barren lands that become susceptible to flooding, further damaging the surrounding areas.

Although removing trees creates more land to farm initially, dry soil prevents a long-term solution.

Loss of Homelands

Not only are plant and animal species under threat, but also the lifestyles of indigenous people. 

As more forests are cleared, and land becomes barren, indigenous communities who live there can no longer sustain their way of life. Many indigenous tribes are forced to relocate and find resources from other areas.

Forcing indigenous people off their land is simply unethical and can impact other communities as well. When forced to relocate, a tribe may move onto land that’s already occupied by another group, putting even more significant strain on the area’s resources.

Deforestation leads to a domino effect of damage to plants, animals, communities, and ultimately the land. There’s pain on all sides that eventually impacts each one of us.

Deforestation Solutions

Due to the tremendous effects of deforestation, greater attention is being paid to the importance of preserving our forests.

Every day another species or community is damaged by the unethical practices of clearing our forests. Although many of the effects are irreversible, we can do things to mitigate what’s been done and work towards repairing our future.

Plant More Trees

Together we can reforest the planet. If we end purposeless deforestation and plant more trees, we can restore some of the most beautiful lands.

Trees for the future is an organization that helps in this mission. They remind us that seeds change the atmosphere, help soils produce bountiful harvests, and provide resources that allow animals and communities to rebuild.

We are proud to have a partnership with Trees for the Future, where we work together on reforesting the planet. Over the past six years, our collaboration has resulted in the planting of over 500,000 trees.

If you can’t plant trees on your own, purchase from brands or donate to organizations that will do it on your behalf.

Use Reclaimed Wood

Rather than cutting down trees to create new wood products, try to shop from brands that use reclaimed wood.

Wood is a sturdy material that we can use in numerous ways, and for many years, so it’s always able to be repurposed. At Original Grain, we use various reclaimed woods and sustainable materials to craft our watches to avoid adding to the problem.

For example, we’ve reclaimed wood from ammo crates, Taylor guitars, and whiskey, tequila, and beer barrels that all would have gone to waste. It’s best to use wood that’s already lived one life and to give it another.

The Importance of Knowing

By understanding what deforestation is and its impact on our planet, we can solve this issue together with greater speed.

When you’re aware of all that deforestation threatens, it puts some urgency on taking action. By pressuring brands and companies to do better, we can all live better. Fighting deforestation is not a one-person job, but we can all do it together.