Saturday, March 14, 2015

RAINFOREST AND CAUSES OF RAINFOREST DEFORESTATION

Rainforest once covered 14% of the earth`s land area, but this is now6%. At the current rate of deforestation, rainforest could disappear altogether by the end of this century. The Amazonian rainforest in South America covers 6,5 million km square and has been described as the 'lungs of the planet' because it converts so much carbon dioxide to oxygen. The second largest rainforest is the Congo Basin in Africa which covers 800000 km square. CAUSES OF RAINFOREST DEFORESTATION 1. Commercial logging ; hardwoods such as teak and mahogany are exported. 2. fuel wood ; people and industry burn wood to produce energy for as to help them carry on their works, 3. Subsistence farming ; slash and burn method of farming. 4. Commercial farming ; large areas are cleared to create land for ranches in so doing trees which could have help rainfall will be cut-out.