Rainforests around the world continue to drop. The concern should not be about losing a few plants and animals; humanity stands to lose much more. By destroying the tropical forests, we jeopardize our quality of life, a risk with the stability of the climate and local weather and endanger the existence of other species. The most relevant impact of deforestation occurs at the local level with the loss of ecological services provided by tropical rainforests and related ecosystems. Such environments afford individuals valuable assistance such as erosion prevention, flood control, water filtration, fisheries protection, and pollination, functions that are especially important to the world’s most miserable people, who rely on natural resources for their daily survival. Over the lengthier duration, deforestation of tropical rainforests can have a broader impact, affecting global weather and biodiversity. These changes are more challenging to observe and forecast from local effects since they take place over a longer time scale and can be tricky to measure.
Our faith in burning fossil fuels, and delivering the carbon stored in them, means we are guilty of adding a lot more carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. In the past 200 years, CO2 in the atmosphere has increased by about 25 percent. The biggest rise has taken place in the last 50 years. Some experts predict an even greater increase in the next 20 years. When the Sun sends solar energy to the Earth, about 70 percent is absorbed, and 30 percent reflects toward space. Greenhouse gases trap some of the reflected solar energy. Greenhouse gases have always been necessary for our existence on Earth. Without them, temperatures on Earth would be about 90°F (33°C) colder, on average. In 2007, NASA announced that average global temperatures have climbed 1.4°F (0.8°C) since 1880; We see the effects of more heated temperatures in disappearing Arctic ice, thawing glaciers, and decaying coral reefs.