Rainforests are the lungs of the earth so let’s protect them
Rainforests are the lungs of the Earth as they capture carbon dioxide and release oxygen into the atmosphere. Yet as millions of hectares of forests are cleared each year, these lungs are becoming diseased. And as we destroy our rainforests, we destroy our ability to breathe. Rainforests play host to over 50% of the world’s biodiversity . They also provide sources of food, medicine and hygiene products. Rainforests need protection now to ensure we still have a healthy planet to live on.
“The trees are our lungs, the rivers our circulation, the air our breath and the earth our body.”
~ DEEPAK CHOPRA ~
RAINFOREST PROTECTION AND RESTORATION
Protection, conservation, restoration, and regeneration of rainforests is important because rainforests are complex ecosystems with many complex relationships between species. In the United Nations’ Strategic Plan for Forests, there is a global plan to increase forest areas by 2030, however, the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations does not believe we are on track to achieve this.Protecting rainforests, particularly old growth rainforests, is important to keep existing ecosystems intact, however, ‘Restoration’ is also needed to assist the recovery of an ecosystem that has been degraded, damaged, or destroyed. It can include planting of trees or removing pressures from the degraded forest. Habitat restoration is vital for reversing current population declines and extinction rates of Threatened species. Now, over 80% of threatened species live in forests and out of 6680 mammals listed as being endangered or threatened on the IUCN redlist, 5547 of them live in forests. Forests also provide 80% of habitat for amphibians, 75% of birds, 68% mammals, and 60% of tropical vascular plants.
BENEFITS OF RESTORATION
- Improves ecosystem quality
- Provides habitat for many threatened species
- Restores fragmented landscapes
- Lessens anthropogenic pressures
- Increases ecosystem services
- Creates ecological resilience
LIMITATIONS TO RESTORATION
THREATS TO RAINFORESTS
Threats to rainforests include:
- Climate Change – As rainforests dry they may become more fire prone, they experience increased lightning ignited fires, and have slow post-fire recoveries.
- Disease – eg. Myrtle rust which has caused several understory plants within rainforests to come close to extinction.
- Invasive species – weeds typically invade when rainforests are cleared or disturbed.
- Deforestation – Although rates of deforestation have slowed globally over the past 30yrs, deforestation and forest degradation continue at alarming rates resulting in significant loss of biodiversity.
DETECTING ILLEGAL LOGGING
It’s not all doom and gloom though, one hopeful initiative is a monitoring and evaluation program that is detecting illegal logging by using old cellphones. “Rainforest Connection” created an acoustic monitoring system with used phones which can detect sounds such as chainsaws and vehicles in areas where illegal logging is suspected. If illegal logging is detected then notifications are sent in real time to local authorities which increases the chances of the illegal logging being stopped. It’s also a great tool for monitoring biodiversity and their patterns so protection of specific areas and species can be better understood. This AI tech is now being used in 35 countries.
THE AMAZON RAINFOREST
The Amazon Rainforest has a major role in maintaining global and regional climates due to its important hydrological cycles. It also has a high level of biodiversity, with over 3million species living in the rainforest, including over 2500 trees (1/3 of all tropical plant species). With rapid climate change, South America is facing some of the most accelerated risks of extinction.
Across the Amazon region we have already witnessed continuous warming, increases in flooding, increases in fire activities (with the Amazon region having one of the highest increases in fires globally over the 21st century) and extreme droughts. As climate change continues, the Amazon region is predicted to become more arid as warming over land increases atmospheric evaporation, altering atmospheric circulation patterns and reducing near-surface humidity. In fact, if deforestation continues, it is predicted that the Amazon will tip into being a dry state by the end of the 21st Century. This will also contribute to a loss of soil moisture, decreases in precipitation, increases in the number of dry days and increased drought and severity. This will result in the contraction of ranges for many species and as the climate changes, there are predictions that certain fauna within the Amazon will migrate towards higher altitudes.
WHAT CAN YOU DO TO HELP?
It can feel overwhelming when discussing these global environmental issues however, sharing information, talking to people, supporting organisations doing the work, and joining in on restoration projects is a great start to becoming a rainforest warrior. So check out the ideas below:
- This decade is UN General Assembly Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. Check out their site and look at how you can spread spread the word!
- Join local restoration/bush regeneration group such as The Big Scrub Rainforest Conservancy who are restoring lowland subtropical rainforest between Byron Bay, Ballina and Lismore. Prior to 1900 there was approx 75,000 hectares but since 1900 only 1% of this rainforest remains and it is scattered across a large landscape. So they are trying to restore and reconnect
- If you have land, consider restoring it through grants from local council, state federal government, or NGOs
- Avoid buying unsustainable sources of palm oil. Palm oil is grown predominantly in the tropics and deforests critical tropical rainforest by replacing with large mono crops of palm. It is in many products including food, detergent, cosmetics, and some biofuels. Palm oil Investigations organisation has an extensive list of all the names they can be hidden under – but one of the clues I find when shopping is when the ingredient is listed as vegetable oil and what type is not disclosed.
- Eat less meat
- Use your voice – sign petitions for deforestation, send a letter to your local MP
- Donate – there are many NGOs and not-for-profits doing the on ground work or advocacy for rainforests, give them a leg up with a one off or ongoing donation
And when that voice inside your head that says you are unimportant, small, insignificant and says that what you do doesn’t matter, remember this story told by Mary Ronald’s Thompson in her book ‘Reclaiming the Wild Soul: How Earth’s landscapes restore us to wholeness’ .
“In the rainforest of the Amazon, the mighty Brazil tree owes his life to the small agouti rat, whose teeth are the only things sharp enough to crack the hard nutshells, enabling the tree to reproduce. Without this tiny creature, the tallest tree in this tall forest, the one that towers over all the others, couldn’t survive. The forest teaches us that by being fully ourselves, however seemingly small and insignificant, we enable the web of life to thrive.”
Peace,
Emma
About the Author
Emma Hawthorne is a conservation biologist, a linguistics graduate from Sydney University and currently studying a Masters in Conservation Biology at Macquarie University. She aims to help people connect to nature, creativity and wellbeing.
