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80% of the world's known biodiversity could be found in tropical rainforests,[47][48] removal
or destruction of significant areas of forest cover has resulted in
a degraded[49] environment with reduced biodiversity.[50]
It has been estimated that we are losing 137 plant, animal and insect species every
single day due to rainforest deforestation, which equates to 50,000 species a
year.[54] Others state that tropical rainforest deforestation is contributing to the
ongoing Holocene mass extinction.[55][56] The known extinction rates from deforestation
rates are very low, approximately 1 species per year from mammals and birds which
extrapolates to approximately 23,000 species per year for all species. Predictions have
been made that more than 40% of the animal and plant species inSoutheast Asia could
be wiped out in the 21st century.[57] Such predictions were called into question by 1995
data that show that within regions of Southeast Asia much of the original forest has been
converted to monospecific plantations, but that potentially endangered species are few
and tree flora remains widespread and stable.[53]
Controlling deforestation
Among countries with a per capita GDP of at least US$4,600, net deforestation rates
have ceased to increase.[1][2]
SOIL
Undisturbed forest has very low rates of soil loss, approximately 2 metric tons per
square kilometer (6 short tons per square mile).[citation needed]
Deforestation generally
increases rates of soil erosion, by increasing the amount of runoff and reducing the
protection of the soil from tree litter. This can be an advantage in excessively leached
tropical rain forest soils. Forestry operations themselves also increase erosion through
the development of roads and the use of mechanized equipment.
China's Loess Plateau was cleared of forest millennia ago. Since then it has been
eroding, creating dramatic incised valleys, and providing the sediment that gives the
Yellow River its yellow color and that causes the flooding of the river in the lower
reaches (hence the river's nickname 'China's sorrow').
Removal of trees does not always increase erosion rates. In certain regions of southwest
US, shrubs and trees have been encroaching on grassland. The trees themselves
enhance the loss of grass between tree canopies. The bare intercanopy areas become
highly erodible. The US Forest Service, in Bandelier National Monument for example, is
studying how to restore the former ecosystem, and reduce erosion, by removing the
trees.
Tree roots bind soil together, and if the soil is sufficiently shallow they act to keep the soil
in place by also binding with underlying bedrock. Tree removal on steep slopes with
shallow soil thus increases the risk of landslides, which can threaten people living
nearby. However most deforestation only affects the trunks of trees, allowing for the
roots to stay rooted, negating the landslide.
[edit]Ecological
Illegalities may also occur during transport, such as illegal processing and export;
fraudulent declaration to customs; and the avoidance of taxes and other charges.
Illegal logging is a pervasive problem, causing enormous damage to forests, local
communities and to the economies of producer countries. Despite the economic
importance of trade in timber and forest products, major international timber consumer
countries, such as the EU, have no legal means to halt the import of illegally sourced
forest products,[2] because the identification of illegally logged or traded timber is
technically difficult. Therefore, a legal basis for normative acts against timber imports or
other products manufactured out of illegal wood is missing. Currently, scientific methods
to pinpoint the geographic origin of timber is under development.[3] Possible actions to
restrict imports cannot meet with WTO regulations of non-discrimination. They must
instead be arranged in bilateral agreements.
Deforestation occurs for many reasons: trees or derived charcoal are used as, or sold,
for fuel or as a commodity, while cleared land is used as pasture for livestock,
plantations of commodities, and settlements. The removal of trees without
sufficientreforestation has resulted in damage to habitat, biodiversity loss and aridity. It
has adverse impacts on biosequestration of atmospheric carbon dioxide. Deforested
regions typically incur significant adverse soil erosion and frequently degrade
intowasteland.
Disregard or ignorance of intrinsic value, lack of ascribed value, lax forest management
and deficient environmental law are some of the factors that allow deforestation to occur
on a large scale. In many countries, deforestation is an ongoing issue that is