Deforestation is a major concern in today’s society. The destruction of the world’s forest areas are leaving millions of acres uninhabitable. The varied species of animals and insects that use to live and thrive from these forests are rapidly becoming extinct. The destruction of the forest is also having a detrimental effect on the people through displacement thus forcing them to seek new living accommodations. Many of these people are loosing their heritage and cultures leaving them with a sense of hopelessness. The barren land left by deforestation is also causing many ecological problems. Increased flooding and soil erosion are two of the other problems facing several countries like China, Brazil, and the Philippines. To gain a better understanding of the immense significance of this matter perhaps a look at the past, present and future are needed.
Deforestation “Past”
Since the beginning of time humans have used nature’s resources to exist. They have hunted for food, drunk the water, used animal hides for clothing and even used the timber for warmth and homes. It was not until the twentieth century that man began to realize the effects of their enormous usage on the environment. Although staples like food and water are a problem in them selves, large-scale logging brought deforestation to the forefront.
· The World Rainforest Movement suggests that Western Europe, for example, has lost over 70 percent of its forests since Roman times and argues that fully one-third of “temperate broadleaved forests have been lost since the dawn of agriculture” (Elliott, 1998).
· In 1901 President Theodore Roosevelt along with Gifford Pinchot and John Muir wrote the first pages of modern environmental history in the United States by moving environmental conservation to the center of national agenda and declaring public primacy over the nations resources (Shabecoff, 1993).
· In 1933 President Franklin Roosevelt shored up his cousins beliefs in the environment by including major conservation programs and projects such as The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), the Soil Conservation Service, and the Tennessee Valley Authority into his New Deal reforms (Theodore, Theodore 1996).
· The President’s Commission on Materials Policy in 1952 estimated that 90 percent of the virgin timber in the U.S. commercial forests had been cut, that reforestation ...
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...ces that cause more severe environmental impacts or problems. The unanswered question is weather such a hope is realistic in the face of the impersonal, price-driven forces of global markets and the reality that even the best production processes today still require the use of growing amounts of materials, energy and the continued transformation of the landscape for the expanding human population.
References
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U.S. Council on Environmental Quality. 1990. Environmental Quality 1990. Washington, D.C. Government Printing Office
Andrews, Richard N. L. 1999. Managing the Environment, Managing Ourselves. Binghamton, New York. Vail-Ballou Press
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Theodore, Mary K., Theodore, Lewis. 1996. Major Environmental Issues Facing the 21st Century. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey. Prentice-Hall, Inc.
They either showed the boundary existed or tried pushing it. The house on 93 Little Hobart Street exemplified the said boundary. It “was a dinky thing perched high up off the road on a hillside so steep that only the back of the house rested on the ground” (Walls 150). In color, the house was gray, and Jeannette decided she wanted to paint the house to try and spruce it up a bit. By doing that, she thought “people might be more accepting of us if we made an effort to improve the way 93 Little Hobart Street looked” (157). All through the memoir, the children try to grasp a sense of acceptance and fitting in. Jeannette’s attempt to improve the appearance of the house failed, making it two-toned. It stood out even more than it had before, and “instead of a freshly painted yellow house, or even a dingy gray one, we now had a weird-looking half-finished patch job” (Walls 158). The dwelling being two colors symbolized the boundary with the fresh paint displaying order and the dingy gray representing turbulence. Order was trying to paint over the turbulence, control the chaos, yet neither color was more dominant than the other and both were obviously
One of the occurring themes is of bravery. The Walls children face adversity when moving from place to place, dealing with bullies and their father goes into an alcohol induced rage. “Brian, Maureen, Lori and I got into more fights than most kids.” Walls tells the readers on page 164. The kids had to learn to stand up for themselves in a harsh community; they had to be brave. Walls also used the theme of forgiveness to teach about the importance of forgiving those who wronged you. Her parents constantly ignored their children’s needs and mistreated them, but in the end they were forgiven for all of that and they were a regular family. “We raised our glasses. I could almost hear Dad chuckling at Mom’s comment in the way he did when he was truly enjoying something.” (Walls 288). The purpose of this comment is to wrap up the story, but it also shows forgiveness and growth. By the end of the book all was forgiven, the neglect, the stealing, the cheating and the lying, and they were family. These themes in the book are an overarching device that is a great tool to show the moral or lesson of the certain story.
As president of the United States, Theodore Roosevelt made conservation a central policy issue of his administration. He created five National Parks, four Big Game Refuges, fifty-one National bird Reservations, and the National Forest Service. Roosevelt
President Theodore Roosevelt has a very strong opinion on conservation. He wanted the American people to know why conservation is a vital part of our lives. Roosevelt gets this message across by making connections between conservation and the progress, patriotism, and morality of the American people. He stresses the significance of conservation throughout his speech and important it is that we take action now. Theodore Roosevelt is a very potent speaker who feels very strongly about conserving our nation’s natural resources.
The controversy over logging, and more specifically clearcutting, is not a new issue in America. Ever since the 1920's and 1930's, when this nation started to become conscious of conservation, citizens have weighed the consequences of logging. Critics have questioned whether the increase in jobs, tax dollars, and economic growth was worth the destruction of forest lands. Regardless of what they believe today, the logging industry had become so efficient that by the late 1980's nearly 100,000 acres of federal land had been clearcut since the industry began. Logging technology has advanced rapidly in terms of speed, to meet the increasing demands for lumber, paper, and other products derived from trees. This in turn has greatly impacted the environment by severely degrading watersheds, leading to increased soil erosion, the diminution in the quality of drinking water, and the decline of fish stocks, among many other consequences. In this essay I will examine the progression of logging equipment throughout the 19th and 20th centuries and discuss how these changes in technology have not only changed the relationship of those who work in the industry, but also haw this has changed the wider relationship of society and nature.
In 1989, seventy five percent of Americans identified themselves as environmentalists, and the number has continued to grow since then (Walls 1). Environmentalism is now the most popular social movement in the United States, with over five million American families donating regularly to environmental organizations (Walls 1). Environmentalists today focus on what kind of world they hope to see in the future, and largely deal with limiting pollution and changing consumption rates (Kent 1 and 9). Modern environmentalists also have much different issues than those Carson’s America faced. With climate change becoming more threatening each year, protection of the natural world is needed more than ever. Pollution has caused the warmest decade in history, the deterioration of the ozone layer, and species extinction in extreme numbers (Hunter 2). It not only threatens nature, but also human populations, who already suffer from lack of clean water and poisoning from toxic chemicals (Hunter 16). Unlike environmental actions in the 1960’s, which were mostly focused on protection, a massive increase in pollution has caused efforts to be focused on environmental restoration (Hunter 16). Like in the time of Silent Spring, environmentalists are not only concerned with one country. Protecting the environment remains a global issue, and every nation is threatened by the
From the perspective of congress, Roosevelt’s political priorities could not have been more wrong. Roosevelt’s didn’t let that hold him back with his determination he wanted to promote the rights of workers, he wanted the federal government to take the lead in dealing with public health and poverty. Roosevelt idolized Abraham Lincoln he would quote from Lincoln often reminding Americans of what Lincoln had told Congress in 1861. From the start of his presidency Roosevelt understood that he and the Congress where not going to see eye-to-eye. Knowing that the legislature was hostile to his policies, Roosevelt decided to use the president’s executive authority to realize his vision. Theodore most dramatic use of executive authority concerned conservation. Roosevelt is often considered the “conservationist president” conservation increasingly become one of Roosevelt’s main concerns. He used his authority to protect wildlife and public lands by creating the United States Forest Service and establishing 150 national forests, 51 federal bird reserves, 4 national game preserves, 5 national parks, and 18 national monuments by enabling the 1906 American Antiquities Act. Today the legacy of Theodore Roosevelt is found across the
Environmental issues affect every life on this planet from the smallest parasite to the human race. There are many resources that humans and animal needs to survive; some of the most obvious resources come from the forests. Forests make up a large percentage of the globe. The forests have global implications not just on life but on the quality of it. Trees improve the quality of the air that species breath, determine rainfall and replenish the atmosphere. The wood from the forests are used everyday form many useful resources. Moreover, thinning the forests increases the amount of available light, nutrients and water for the remaining trees. Deforestation (forest thinning) is one of the most critical issues of environmental problems that are occurring today.
The poem itself is a technique Robert Frost uses to convey his ideas. Behind the literal representation of building walls, there is a deeper metaphoric meaning, which reflects people's attitudes towards others. It reflects the social barriers people build, to provide a sense of personal security and comfort, in the belief that barriers are a source of protection, which will make people ...
Rudel, K. Thomas, J. Timmons Roberts and JoAnn Carmin. 2011. “Political Economy of the Environment.” Annual Review of Sociology 37: 221-238.
Withgott, J., & Laposata, M. (2012). Essential environment: The science behind the stories. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
Though deforestation has increased at an alarming rate throughout the past fifty years, deforestation has been performed during the course of history. According to the World Resources Institute, a majority of the world’s enduring naturally occurring forests are found in Alaska, Canada, Russia and the Northwestern Amazon. Research has demonstrated forests are more likely to be destroyed and repurposed where economic revenues tied to agriculture and pasture are prominent, typically attributed to advantageous weather conditions, or lower expenses of demolishing the forest and delivering merchandises to the global
Deforestation, defined by biologist Charles Southwick as "the destruction of forests; may involve clear-cutting or selective logging" (p. 365), is a predominantly human-driven process that is dramatically altering ecosystems worldwide. "Clear-cutting" involves the indiscriminant removal of every single plant and tree species from within a selected area. The other major process of deforestation, "selective logging," focuses removal efforts on only specific, predetermined tree species within a chosen area. The statistics gathered about human deforestation over time are considerable, and they can be somewhat controversial. Depending on the source and the location selected, the magnitude of deforestation varies. Southwick estimates that, approximately 10,000 years ago, 6.2 billion hectares (23.9 million square miles) of forest existed on earth (p. 117). That figure is equivalent to 45.5% of the earth's total land. He further estimates that, by 1990, this amount had declined 30%, with only 4.3 billion hectares of forest remaining (p. 117). Southwick also acknowledges other estimates that place the total amount of deforestation between 50% and 75% (p. 117). NASA has similar deforestation statistics that confirm these trends. According to their website, 16.5% of the Brazilian Amazon forests have been destroyed. They also note similar magnitudes of deforestation in Southeast Asia (Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam), despite the significantly smaller total area of forest within these countries. These grim figures are somewhat tempered by the NASA finding that, over the past ten years, the deforestation rate has declined from 6,200 square miles per year to 4,800 square miles per year. Though this trend is n...
People have been deforesting the Earth for thousands of years, primarily to clear land for crops or livestock. Although tropical forests are largely confined to developing countries, they aren’t just meeting local or national needs; economic globalization means that the needs and wants of the global population are bearing down on them as well. Direct causes of deforestation are agricultural expansion, wood extraction (e.g., logging or wood harvest for domestic fuel or charcoal), and infrastructure expansion such as road building and urbanization. Rarely is there a single direct cause for deforestation. Most often, multiple processes work simultaneously or sequentially to cause deforestation.
Withgott, J., & Brennan, S. (2011). Environment: the science behind the stories (4th ed.). San Francisco, CA: Pearson Benjamin Cummings.