Carbon is the basic foundation of life on Earth. This element makes many essential organic molecules like carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, and nucleic acid, which are the main source of life for every individual. Yet, deforestation affect the carbon cycle by disrupting all these elements.
Not only in a biological role, it also has a major role in the environmental system cycling through the atmosphere, soil, ocean, and living organisms.
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So, the maintenance of the carbon cycle is essential for all living beings. And many human activities are disturbing the cycle which leads to environmental changes. This article is going to cover how deforestation affect the carbon cycle and what are the solutions for this phenomenon.
What is the Carbon Cycle?
The carbon cycle is the process that maintains the amount of carbon in the atmosphere, soil, ocean, and living organisms. It is a cyclic process in which carbon dioxide moves from living organisms to the atmosphere and then from the atmosphere to water and soil again and this process reoccurs repeatedly in a cycle.
There are a few key components of the carbon cycle like atmospheric carbon, oceanic carbon, biological carbon, and geological carbon. The plants use CO2 for photosynthesis to produce energy in the atmosphere. In the ocean, the ocean absorbs vast amounts of carbon for marine organisms and plants. While plants, microorganisms, and animals use carbon to build tissue in the biological system.
In geological carbon, the fossil fuel stores most of the CO2 from the atmosphere for a long period. It is important to maintain the energy level and balance it on the planet Earth. Other human activities like forest clearance and, the burning of fossil fuels have disrupted this cycle.
What is Deforestation?
Deforestation is the process of cutting down or destroying large numbers of forests to use for agricultural purposes urban development or other industrial activities. This process results in the permanent destruction of trees for vegetation which leads to reducing biodiversity.
In 2023 the total loss of global forest is 3.7 million hectares. Deforestation is one of the big reasons for the disruption of the carbon cycle because it affect by preventing plants from absorbing extra carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. So in this case, more carbon dioxide remains in the atmosphere.
How Does Forest Loss Impact the Carbon Cycle?
Forests are often considered the lungs of forests because of their main role in the carbon cycle. Forests and plants consume carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and use it for the process of photosynthesis to produce energy and grow. During this process, they store carbon in the tree branches, trunks, leaves, and roots. It is explained that a single tree can absorb around 48 pounds of carbon dioxide per year.
Carbon reserve is also present underground in the form of fossil fuels. Such as coal and oil and when these fossil fuels are burned, they release hundreds of millions of years of stored carbon into the atmosphere in the form of carbon dioxide. Forests also store carbon in the soil for the decay of dead organisms and other organic matter.
Deforestation and The Largest Rainforest
The Amazon rainforest is the largest in the world. And it stores around 4 to 5 years of human-made carbon. Only tropical forests contribute around 1.5 gigatons of carbon storage annually to the atmosphere. So, when the forests are cut down, burned, or destroyed the carbon stored in their biomass is released into the atmosphere as carbon dioxide. It means the increase of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere which causes global warming.
When there is degradation in the exposed soil, oxidation and erosion processes release the accumulative carbon into the atmosphere. Tree loss disrupts the local ecosystem and biodiversity. Forests help other organisms to contribute to the carbon cycle process, such as the decomposers that help in the process of recycling the carbon through the ecosystem.
The effect of deforestation does not only impact the area where trees are cut down but it will affect the global system. Increases in carbon dioxide contribute to the increase in the earth’s temperature because of which the ice from the mountain melts down and enters the sea. This will lead to rising sea levels and changing weather patterns.
Scientists said that the Amazon rainforest has faced extensive tree loss and if it continues the Amazon will reach the tipping point where it will shift from carbon sink to carbon source and it will release a vast amount of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. When CO2 gas is released into the atmosphere, it directly contributes to greenhouse gas emissions. Forest degradation is the cause of approximately 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere.
According to National Geographic, tree loss is another cause of viruses transferring from animals to humans. According to the SDG update about 60% of virus-infectious diseases came from animals to humans.
Human Influence on the Forest Destruction and Carbon Cycle
Human activities have significantly influenced the shape of the earth’s landscape and also the changes in the carbon cycle. Humans are directly changing the level of carbon storage and release. Many man-made carbon compounds have been there that will stay for decades in the atmosphere. There are the following human activities that have a bad affect on the carbon cycle and deforestation:
1. Burning of Fossil Fuels
The greatest and fastest human impact on the carbon cycle is the extraction and burning of fossil fuels. Fossil fuels include natural gas, oil, and coal. In this process, the carbon shifts directly from the geosphere to the atmosphere. By 2020, almost 450 gigatons of carbon evaporated from fossils into the atmosphere.
The extraction of massive amounts of CO2 in the atmosphere intensifies the greenhouse effect. Its excess amount overwhelms the earth’s natural ability to absorb carbon and leads to an imbalance in the carbon cycle. The release of carbon from soil turns the soil into drought which can cause plants damage which lead toward deforestation.
Also burning of fossil fuels changes the natural climate and increases the earth’s temperature. When the temperature rises the air becomes dry which becomes the cause of forest fires. Forest stores CO2 gas which is eventually eliminated in the atmosphere and the cycle repeats.
2. Halocarbons
Halocarbons are synthetic chemicals such as chlorofluorocarbons(CFCs), Hydrochlorofluorocarbons(HCFCs), and halons which have indirect impacts on the carbon cycle and deforestation.
These gases are available in air conditioners, refrigerators, and other human-made resources. These gases have a major impact on the ozone layer which causes ozone depletion but they also have a range of bad impacts on the carbon cycle.
The UV rays affect plant life, reduce its photosynthesis weaken its immune system, and also damage its DNA. This can lead to a decrease in plant production and impact the carbon cycle by reducing the amount of carbon.
3. Land use Changes
Since agricultural expansion, humans have been directly or indirectly affect the carbon cycle over thousands of years of timescale leading to large-scale deforestation. Over the past few centuries, human use of land intentionally and unintentionally caused land damage and land cover change. It leads to the loss of biodiversity which lowers the ecosystem gives environmental stress and decreases the ability to remove carbon from the environment.
If I explain it directly, then it releases carbon from the ecosystem to the environment. We are also removing a large amount of forests for agriculture purposes, which hold excess amounts of carbon in their soil and we are replacing it with urban areas and agriculture. Both replacements store less amount of carbon which means that the large amount is then entering into the atmosphere. Moreover, the effects of forest loss on the environment and overall carbon cycle are reversible by reforestation.
Conclusion
Deforestation has been a significant threat to the carbon cycle and global climate as well. When the stored carbon releases and combines with the carbon in the environment it highlights that there is a need for urgent action.
Human activities are mainly the source of land clearing and the disruption of the carbon cycle. It has major effects like changes in weather patterns, and water cycles and threatening biodiversity.
By understanding the relationship between the carbon cycle and deforestation, we need to prioritize the efforts to protect the ecosystem. Only if we take collective global actions, we can mitigate the effects of forest degradation and protect forests not only for the ecosystem but also it is necessary for the future of the planet and ensuring the stability of climate for generations to come.
