Cause Of Current Warming: Deforestation And Climate Change

• Greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels is by far the main cause of global warming (natural forcing included)

• However, deforestation is also an important factor which has serious implications for long term sustainability of our climate system (and biodiversity)

• Deforestation plays on two different levels:
-The loss of CO2 uptake by forests depletion and therefore the increase in global CO2 levels
- The decay of organic matter and the release of significant amounts of methane (a strong GHG gas) in the process

• Deforestation mostly comes from cutting down trees for commercial and heating purposes, fires, pollution (acid rains, soil and air pollution); mining; extreme events; melting of the permafrost.

• Massive reforestation would be a relatively inexpensiv way to limit the impacts of climate change (limit the increase of GHG and soil erosion)

• Mangroves are amongst the most efficient trees for the storage of GHG. However, mangroves around the world are rapidly vanishing.

Source of Information : Climate Change: A Silent Threat by Sylvain Richer de Forges

Cause Of Current Warming: Deforestation And Climate Change